pulley Hear it!

pulley definition

pul·ley (po̵ol′ē)

noun pl. pulleys -·leys

  1. a small fixed wheel, sometimes turning in a block, with a grooved rim in which a rope or chain runs, as to raise a weight attached at one end by pulling on the other end: it changes the direction of effort but provides no mechanical advantage
  2. a combination of such wheels, used to increase the mechanical advantage
  3. a wheel that turns or is turned by a belt, rope, chain, etc., so as to transmit power

Etymology: ME poley < OFr polie < ML poleia < poledia < MGr *polidion, dim. of polos, pivot, windlass, axis: see wheel

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

pulley Synonyms

pulley

n.

sheave, block, lift, lifter, crowbar, crow, pry; see also tool 1.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

pulley Usage Examples

Preposition: on

  • shaft: Note the balanced cast-iron pulley on the motor shaft - a pleasing touch.

Adjective modifier

  • 3-step: The 3-step pulley together with its attached " sun " gear was free to rotate on the headstock spindle.

Modifies a noun

  • wheel: The pulley wheels attach to pulley stiles - the upright sides of the frame which hide the weights.

Noun used with modifier

  • headstock: The three rings of indexing holes in the headstock pulley were engaged by a pointer mounted on a swinging bracket.
pulley usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

Link to this page:

Cite this page:

MLA Style

"pulley." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 5 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/pulley>

APA Style

pulley. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 5th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/pulley

Comments:

Please or Register to post a comment