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cylinder
[ sil-in-der ]
noun
- Geometry. a surface or solid bounded by two parallel planes and generated by a straight line moving parallel to the given planes and tracing a curve bounded by the planes and lying in a plane perpendicular or oblique to the given planes.
- any cylinderlike object or part, whether solid or hollow.
- the rotating part of a revolver, containing the chambers for the cartridges.
- (in a pump) a cylindrical chamber in which a piston slides to move or compress a fluid.
- (in an engine) a cylindrical chamber in which the pressure of a gas or liquid moves a sliding piston.
- (in certain printing presses)
- a rotating cylinder that produces the impression and under which a flat form to be printed from passes.
- either of two cylinders, one carrying a curved form or plate to be printed from, that rotate against each other in opposite directions.
- (in certain locks) a cylindrical device for retaining the bolt until tumblers have been pushed out of its way.
- (in a screw or cylindrical gear) an imaginary cylindrical form, concentric to the axis, defining the pitch or the inner or outer ends of the threads or teeth.
- Computers. the tracks of a magnetic disk that are accessible from a single radial position of the access mechanism.
- Textiles. the main roller on a carding machine, especially the roller covered with card clothing that works in combination with the worker and stripper rollers in carding fibers.
- Archaeology. a cylindrical or somewhat barrel-shaped stone or clay object bearing a cuneiform inscription or a carved design, worn by the Babylonians, Assyrians, and kindred peoples as a seal and amulet.
verb (used with object)
- to furnish with a cylinder or cylinders.
- to subject to the action of a cylinder or cylinders.
cylinder
/ ˈsɪlɪndə /
noun
- a solid consisting of two parallel planes bounded by identical closed curves, usually circles, that are interconnected at every point by a set of parallel lines, usually perpendicular to the planes. Volume base area × length
- a surface formed by a line moving round a closed plane curve at a fixed angle to it
- any object shaped like a cylinder
- the chamber in a reciprocating internal-combustion engine, pump, or compressor within which the piston moves See also cylinder block
- the rotating mechanism of a revolver, situated behind the barrel and containing cartridge chambers
- printing any of the rotating drums on a printing press
- Also calledcylinder seal a cylindrical seal of stone, clay, or precious stone decorated with linear designs, found in the Middle East and Balkans: dating from about 6000 bc
- Also calledhot-water cylinder a vertical cylindrical tank for storing hot water, esp an insulated one made of copper used in a domestic hot-water system
- firing on all cylindersworking or performing at full capability
verb
- tr to provide (a system) with cylinders
cylinder
/ sĭl′ən-dər /
- A three-dimensional surface or solid object bounded by a curved surface and two parallel circles of equal size at the ends. The curved surface is formed by all the line segments joining corresponding points of the two parallel circles.
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Derived Forms
- ˈcylinder-ˌlike, adjective
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Other Words From
- cylin·der·like adjective
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Word History and Origins
Origin of cylinder1
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Word History and Origins
Origin of cylinder1
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Idioms and Phrases
see firing on all cylinders .Discover More
Example Sentences
Ice cores are cylinders removed from such ice, such as a glacier.
Anderson filled a cylinder with uncooked rice grains and sealed it off, heating the container while rotating it and increasing the interior pressure.
A little over two years ago, a shipping container-sized cylinder bearing Microsoft’s name and logo was lowered onto the ocean floor off the northern coast of Scotland.
Even if Milwaukee was guilty of treating the seeding games like a tune-up, Giannis’s game was still firing on all cylinders.
In new lab experiments, physicists dropped a cylinder onto this goop.
When we step into that cylinder of dry air and certain doom, all we can think is what it will be like when it crashes.
He took a small metal cylinder from his pajama pocket and picked up the guitar.
That cylinder is in a chamber within the satellite, not unlike an astronaut aboard the International Space Station.
Agate was widely used to carve high-value objects like signets and cylinder seals in the ancient Near East.
The point of having lots of businesses under one roof is that not every unit will fire on every cylinder in every quarter.
I believe you will find this an exceeding good duty for a 5½-inch cylinder engine.
At Wheal Alfred they have a 64-inch cylinder; the air-pump is 20 inches, and the stroke is half that of the engine.
A four-way cock near the top of the cylinder turned the steam on and off.
A flattish cover was bolted on to the top of the boiler, and the cylinder was let down into this top.
People used to say that she forked the mine better than two of Boulton and Watt's 80-inch cylinder engines.
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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