n. An instrument used to measure the intensity and direction of a magnetic field, especially at points on the Earth's surface.
the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English
n. An instrument for measuring the intensity of magnetic forces; also, less frequently, an instrument for determining any of the terrestrial magnetic elements, as the dip and declination.
The Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
n. An instrument used to measure magnetic forces or the strength of a magnetic field, especially one used to measure the intensity of the earth's magnetic force at any place.
WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
n. a meter to compare strengths of magnetic fields
Word Usage
"Security Staff at Reagan Airport forced a seputgenerian Congressman to strip to his underwear, refusing to believe that the thing that was ringing the magnetometer was his artificial hip."