chan·nel / ˈchanl/ • n. 1. a length of water wider than a strait, joining two larger areas of water, esp. two seas. ∎  the navigable part of a waterway. ∎  a hollow bed for a natural or artificial waterway. ∎  (the Channel) the English Channel. ∎  a narrow gap or passage. ∎  a tubular passage or duct for liquid. ∎  an electric circuit that acts as a path for a signal: an audio channel. ∎  a groove or flute, esp. in a column. ∎  Electr. the semiconductor region in a field-effect transistor that forms the main current path between the source and the drain.2. a band of frequencies used in radio and television transmission, esp. as used by a particular station. ∎  a service or station using such a band: a shopping channel.3. a medium for communication or the passage of information: they didn't apply through the proper channels.• v. (-neled, -nel·ing; Brit. -nelled, -nel·ling) [tr.] 1. direct toward a particular end or object: advertisers channel money into radio. ∎  guide along a particular route or through a specified medium. ∎  (of a person) serve as a medium for (a spirit).2. [usu. as adj.] (channeled) form channels or grooves in: the lower jawbone is deeply channeled.

channel
1. In telecommunications in general, a separate path through which signals can flow.

2. In the public switched telephone network (PSTN), one of multiple transmission paths within a single link between network points.

3. In mainframe parlance, a specialized processor that comprises an information route and associated circuitry to control input and/or output operations. It normally provides for formatting and buffering and has the necessary control to meet the timing requirements of an I/O device.

Several different I/O devices may be connected to one channel and the control circuitry within the channel directs the data streams to or from the appropriate device. If the I/O devices have a relatively slow data rate, then a multiplexer channel is used in which transfers to or from the separate devices are interleaved, character by character, such that several devices can work simultaneously.

When a number of devices with high data rates, e.g. magnetic disk and tape, are to be connected, a selector channel is used. This will transfer a complete record to or from a device before reselecting.

A channel is often a wired-program processor. As channels have become more elaborate they have tended to become programmed computers (I/O processors) in themselves. See also peripheral processor.

4. Microsoft's term for all the entries into the active desktop bar associated with Internet Explorer V4, Windows 98, and above.

5. On the World Wide Web, a pre-defined Web site that can automatically send updated information for immediate display or viewing on request.

6. In computer marketing, a “middleman” between a product creator and the marketplace. This is distinct from direct selling where the manufacturer sells directly to the end user. Value-added resellers (VAR) and retail store chains are examples of channels in this context.

7. In a field-effect transistor (FET), the path in the semiconductor through which current flows.

channel
1. The preferred linear route along which surface water and groundwater flow is usually concentrated (although water can flow across wide, flat surfaces as sheet flow). It is commonly a linear, concave-based depression (e.g. river channel, submarine fan channel). The geometry may be sinuous, anastomosing, or straight, and with a widely variable width-to-depth ratio. See BRAIDED STREAM; and MEANDER.

2. A narrow seaway connecting two wider bodies of water (e.g. the English Channel).

3. In remote sensing, the range of wavelengths recorded by a single detector to form an image.

channel
1. The preferred linear route along which surface water and groundwater flow is usually concentrated (although water can flow across wide, flat surfaces as sheet flow). It is commonly a linear, concave-based depression (e.g. river channel, submarine fan channel). The geometry may be sinuous, anastomosing, or straight, and with a widely variable width-to-depth ratio. See braided stream and meander.

2. A narrow seaway connecting two wider bodies of water (e.g. the English Channel).

channel.
1. Canal, as in the shaft of a column.

2. Canaliculus of a Doric triglyph.

3. Bevelled channelling or grooves in rustication.

4. Furrow, groove, or gutter sunk for carrying off water from a surface.