What do you mean by gateway

The term gateway refers to a piece of networking hardware that has the following meaning: In a communications network, a network node equipped for interfacing with another network that uses different protocols.

‎ A gateway is a node (router) in a computer network, a key stopping point for data on its way to or from other networks.

A gateway is a data communication device that provides a remote network with connectivity to a host network. A gateway device provides communication to a remote network or an autonomous system that is out of bounds for the host network nodes. Gateways serve as the entry and exit point of a network, all data routed inward or outward must first pass through and communicate with the gateway in order to use routing paths. Generally, a router is configured to work as a gateway device in computer networks.