Ap"pa*ratus (?), n.; pl.
Apparatus, also rarely Apparatuses
(?). [L., from apparare, apparatum, to prepare; ad +
prepare to make ready.] 1. Things provided as
means to some end.
2. Hence: A full collection or set of implements,
or utensils, for a given duty, experimental or operative; any complex
instrument or appliance, mechanical or chemical, for a specific action or
operation; machinery; mechanism.
3. (Physiol.) A collection of organs all of
which unite in a common function; as, the respiratory
apparatus.