to operate on
21
3.8
- phrasal verb
- Specialized
:
operar sobre
- The technician can operate on the printer to fix the paper jam.
- operate on data
- operate on limited budgets
- operate on different levels
Do a mixing and then operate on the mixed matrix.
- Do a mixing and then operate on the mixed matrix.
Examples
-
But in fact, the test operates on principles that seem entirely reasonable.
Academic text (1999) -
Those programs operate on the boring old computer.
-
The cell operates on any source of light.
-
In fact, most market exchanges operate on the basis of trust and people's word of honor.
Academic text (2008) -
The first is the set of instructions that operate on decimal data.
Academic text (1999) -
Furthermore, commercial transaction-processing and database programs tend to operate on a relatively large working set of data.
Academic text (2000) -
After Forrest's departure, the task force continued to operate on a shoestring budget.
Academic text (2011) -
Altruism, however, does not pay the bills, and professional associations frequently operate on the brink of bankruptcy.
Academic text (1993) -
As a back-up system, Boeing decided to install two chillers that operate on cooling towers.
Academic text (1996) -
The software is designed to operate on various file formats.
How Thoroughly
485
2.8
- Specialized
7
5.6
- Specialized
21
3.8
388
3.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
The sense 'to apply a procedure or operation to something' follows directly from combining 'operate' (to perform an operation/use controls) with the preposition 'on' (indicating the target). This verb + preposition pattern is a regular compositional construction found across languages and should be understandable to a B1 learner who knows both constituents.
Etymology
Operate on also uses the picture of a person or machine operating on a device or file, literally 'working on' it step by step, so it can mean 'to apply a procedure to data, files, or objects'.