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pendulum
6 dictionary results for: Pendulum
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
pen·du·lum 
[pen-juh-luhm, pen-duh-] Pronunciation Key
—Related forms
[pen-juh-luhm, pen-duh-] Pronunciation Key –noun
| 1. | a body so suspended from a fixed point as to move to and fro by the action of gravity and acquired momentum. |
| 2. | Horology. a swinging lever, weighted at the lower end, for regulating the speed of a clock mechanism. |
—Related forms
pen·du·lum·like, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| pen·du·lum
(pěn'jə-ləm, pěn'dyə-, pěn'də-) Pronunciation Key
n.
[New Latin, probably from Italian pendolo, pendulous, pendulum, from Latin pendulus, hanging; see pendulous.] |
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
pendulum
pendulum
1660, from Mod.L. pendulum (1643), properly neut. of L. adj. pendulus "hanging down," from pendere "to hang" (see pendant).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
| pendulum | |
noun | |
| an apparatus consisting of an object mounted so that it swings freely under the influence of gravity |
WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
The American Heritage Science Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| pendulum
(pěn'jə-ləm) Pronunciation Key
A mass hung from a fixed support so that it is able to swing freely under the influence of gravity. Since the motion of pendulums is regular and periodic, they are often used to regulate the action of various devices, especially clocks.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Pendulum
Pen"du*lum\, n.; pl. Pendulums. [NL., fr. L. pendulus hanging, swinging. See Pendulous.] A body so suspended from a fixed point as to swing freely to and fro by the alternate action of gravity and momentum. It is used to regulate the movements of clockwork and other machinery. Note: The time of oscillation of a pendulum is independent of the arc of vibration, provided this arc be small. Ballistic pendulum. See under Ballistic. Compensation pendulum, a clock pendulum in which the effect of changes of temperature of the length of the rod is so counteracted, usually by the opposite expansion of differene metals, that the distance of the center of oscillation from the center of suspension remains invariable; as, the mercurial compensation pendulum, in which the expansion of the rod is compensated by the opposite expansion of mercury in a jar constituting the bob; the gridiron pendulum, in which compensation is effected by the opposite expansion of sets of rodsof different metals. Compound pendulum, an ordinary pendulum; -- so called, as being made up of different parts, and contrasted with simple pendulum. Conical or Revolving, pendulum, a weight connected by a rod with a fixed point; and revolving in a horizontal cyrcle about the vertical from that point. Pendulum bob, the weight at the lower end of a pendulum. Pendulum level, a plumb level. See under Level. Pendulum wheel, the balance of a watch. Simple or Theoretical, pendulum, an imaginary pendulum having no dimensions except length, and no weight except at the center of oscillation; in other words, a material point suspended by an ideal line.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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