To be more correct, a router routes packets. And an access point allows access to a network. An access point can contain a router function, but they are themselves discrete functions.

An IP (Internet Protocol) router routes packets of data from one IP network to another. In the case we are referring to here, it routes private IP address that you use in your home or business, to public Internet addresses that can go anywhere in the world. These types of routers also contain a separate discrete function called Network Address Translation (NAT). That function translates the public address to the private one for IP sessions.