Definition of "accelerator"

accelerator

/ək.ˈsɛl.ə.ˌɹeɪ.tɚ/

noun
plural accelerators
1. One who, or that which, accelerates.
2. A device for causing acceleration.
3. (chemistry) A substance which speeds up chemical reactions.
4. (vehicles) A pedal causing the vehicle to accelerate when it is pressed.
5. (photography) A chemical that reduces development time.
6. (physics) A device that accelerates charged subatomic particles; a particle accelerator.
7. (physiology, medicine) A muscle or nerve that speeds the performance of an action.
8. (computing) An accelerator key.
  Quotations
  If they had allowed single-character accelerators, Windows wouldn't be able to determine whether the character was input or a shortcut.
  2002, Davis Howard Chapman, Sams Teach Yourself Visual C++ .NET in 21 Days, page 187
9. (computing) A computer component using dedicated hardware to accelerate the processing and display of graphics.
10. (historical) A light van to take mails between a post office and a railway station.
11. (business) A mentoring program for startup companies.
  Quotations
  In the nineties, before the accelerator era, startups were usually launched by mid-career engineers or repeat entrepreneurs, who sought millions in venture capital and then labored in secret on something complicated that took years to launch.
  2016 October 3, Tad Friend, “Sam Altman’s Manifest Destiny”, in The New Yorker‎