Skip to main content
to serve as a conduit

to serve as a conduit

1 7.5
Act as a way to pass information between groups
  • phrasal verb
translation icon : servir de conducto
  • In his role, the ambassador strives to serve as a conduit for dialogue between the two countries.
  • serves as a conduit of information

And so just, you know, pets serving as a conduit for a bunch of microbes that we wouldn't otherwise come in contact with is a is a possibility as well.

Examples

  • In Tunis and Algiers, Jews served as the conduit for Ottoman trade with Christian countries across the Mediterranean.

    Academic text (2010)
  • Syria serves as a conduit for Iranian military supplies and often determines the timing, location, and scope of Hezbollah attacks.

    Academic text (2003)
  • This overseas network has served, and continues to serve, as a conduit for new business, cultural, and political relationships.

    Academic text (2003)
  • I am one among the scores of other women who serve as a conduit between the oppressed and the outside world.

    Blog text (3)
  • Secular singles might project the Church into the world even in seemingly unlikely locations, hoping to serve as a special conduit for communication and transformation.

    Academic text (2007)
  • Addressing these concerns, it is imperative that programs such as syringe exchange be comprehensive in scope and serve as a conduit to the treatment community.

    Academic text (2002)
  • The investigation into the Petters scheme showed those companies were shells set up at Petters' direction to serve as a conduit for investors' cash.

    Blog text (21)
  • Establishing a capacity-building partnership between the FCHDR and its stakeholders can serve as a conduit for experts on best practices, health needs, and policies.

    Academic text (2011)
  • With assistance from the U.S. Agency for International Development (AID), it operates a training center for both the government and other GRSOs and serves as a conduit for AID financial assistance to reach other organizations.

    Academic text (1994)
  • In 1963, he founded, along with anthropologist Margaret Mead, the Scientists' Institute for Public Information, which served as a conduit of communication between scientists and the public well into the 1980s.

    Blog text (33)

Synonyms

to transmit
vsto serve as a conduit
169 3.7

To send something from one thing to another, for example a message or disease

is about acting between parties to transfer communication specifically rather than general sending
to relay
vsto serve as a conduit
102 3.5

To receive and then pass on a message or signal

is a role connecting parties to enable ongoing communication rather than a single pass
to pass along
vsto serve as a conduit
76 2.5

Give news, a message, or something you received to another person

is about acting between parties to move communications rather than simple handing over
to mediate
vsto serve as a conduit
16 5.5

To act as a link between two things

is specifically about enabling communication between parties rather than being a middle stage
to proxy
vsto serve as a conduit
1 5.7

To act for someone else, often by sending their internet data through another computer

is about connecting parties to pass information rather than replacing a person
to act as a liaison
vsto serve as a conduit
1 5.2

To connect two groups so they can communicate and work together

is mainly about connecting parties to pass information rather than enabling wide cooperation

Antonyms

161 3.5

To separate something so it is no longer joined, for example remove a cable or turn off power

How Indirect

to mediate
32 5.1
to serve as a conduit
1 7.5
to relay
102 3.5
to pass on
134 2.7

Surface Forms

serve as a conduit infinitive
served as a conduit past participle
serving as a conduit present participle
serves as a conduit third person singular

Morphology

serve + as + a + conduit

The phrase is compositionally built: 'serve as' means 'act as' and 'conduit' denotes a channel or means of transmission, so the combined sense 'act as a channel/intermediary' is directly derivable from the constituents. Although 'conduit' is somewhat formal, the channel metaphor is common cross-linguistically and follows a straightforward noun-complement pattern that a learner who knows the words can infer.

Etymology

Serve as a conduit comes from the image of a conduit as a pipe or channel that carries water or messages from one place to another. So when someone serves as a conduit, they 'pass information' between people, acting like that channel.