What does thermostat mean?
Word: Thermostat
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Thermostat means a device that switches heating or cooling on and off by itself to keep a room, machine or appliance at a set temperature.
Word origin: Coined around 1830 from Greek words for heat and for standing still.
How do you spell thermostat?
Syllables: ther - mo - stat
Tricky part: The vowel after therm is o, as in thermometer, so thermastat and thermustat are wrong.
Watch out for: thermastat, thermustat, thermostate
Memory tip: The round dial on a heater is shaped like the o that sits in the middle of the word.
Thermostat in a sentence
Example 1: Dad set the thermostat of the air conditioner to 24 degrees to save electricity.
Example 2: The fridge was warm because its thermostat had stopped working.
Example 3: An oven's thermostat clicks off once the right baking temperature is reached.
Fun Fact
Many simple thermostats use a bimetallic strip, two metals joined together that expand by different amounts, so the strip bends as it warms and breaks the circuit.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Fusion
Choose the two parts that make the word described:
______ is a device that turns heating or cooling on and off to keep a set temperature. 1. thermo 2. hydro 3. stat 4. meter 5. scope 6. plane
a) 1 and 3
b) 2 and 4
c) 1 and 4
d) 2 and 6
Show answer
a) 1 and 3. The device holds the heat steady; thermo with meter makes thermometer, which only measures heat and switches nothing.
Sound Check
In which word is 'th' pronounced differently?
a) theory
b) thyme
c) thermostat
d) thermal
Show answer
b) thyme. Thyme starts with a plain t sound, like time; thermostat, thermal and theory start with the th of thin.
Word Puzzle
Match each word with its meaning:
1. thermostat 2. barometer 3. altimeter a. an instrument that shows how high an aircraft is b. an instrument that measures air pressure c. a control that cuts the power once things are warm enough and restores it as they cool
a) 1-a, 2-b, 3-c
b) 1-c, 2-a, 3-b
c) 1-c, 2-b, 3-a
d) 1-b, 2-c, 3-a
Show answer
c) 1-c, 2-b, 3-a. A barometer reads air pressure, an altimeter reads height, and the thermostat controls temperature.
Spell Probe
Fill the blanks with 'e' and 'a'. Which option gives the meaning of that word?
1. th__rmost__t 2. c__rp__t 3. f__rt__le 4. h__rv__st
a) the time of year when crops are gathered in
b) able to produce good crops or many young
c) a thick floor covering made of wool or other material
d) a device that keeps something at a steady temperature
Show answer
d) a device that keeps something at a steady temperature. Only the first word takes e and then a; carpet and harvest need a before e, and fertile needs e and i.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. In which of these would you most expect to find a thermostat?
a) an electric iron
b) a ceiling fan
c) a table lamp
d) a doorbell
Show answer
a) an electric iron
2. If the thermostat of a water heater is set too high, the water will be ___.
a) the same as before
b) just lukewarm
c) hotter than needed
d) colder than usual
Show answer
c) hotter than needed
