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valve - 8 dictionary results
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valve

  [valv] ,noun, verb, valved, valv⋅ing.
Use valve in a Sentence
–noun
1. any device for halting or controlling the flow of a liquid, gas, or other material through a passage, pipe, inlet, outlet, etc.
2. a hinged lid or other movable part that closes or modifies the passage in such a device.
3. Anatomy. a membranous fold or other structure that controls the flow of a fluid, as one that permits blood to flow in one direction only.
4. (in musical wind instruments of the trumpet class) a device for changing the length of the air column to alter the pitch of a tone.
5. Zoology.
a. one of the two or more separable pieces composing certain shells.
b. either half of the silicified shell of a diatom.
6. Botany.
a. one of the segments into which a capsule dehisces.
b. a flap or lidlike part of certain anthers.
7. Electronics (chiefly British). vacuum tube (def. 1).
8. Archaic. one of the leaves of a double or folding door.
–verb (used with object)
9. to provide with a means of controlling the flow of liquid, gas, etc., by inserting a valve.
Origin:
1350–1400; ME < L valvae leaves of a door

Related forms:
valveless, adjective
valvelike, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Install a Shut Off Valve
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valve   (vālv)   


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n.  
  1. Anatomy A membranous structure in a hollow organ or passage, as in an artery or vein, that folds or closes to prevent the return flow of the body fluid passing through it.
    1. Any of various devices that regulate the flow of gases, liquids, or loose materials through piping or through apertures by opening, closing, or obstructing ports or passageways.
    2. The movable control element of such a device.
    3. Music A device in a brass wind instrument that permits change in pitch by a rapid varying of the air column in a tube.
    4. One of the paired, hinged shells of certain mollusks and of brachiopods.
    5. One of the two silicified halves of the cell wall of a diatom.
    6. The entire, one-piece shell of a snail and certain other mollusks.
    7. One of the sections into which the wall of a seedpod or other dehiscent fruit splits.
    8. A lidlike covering of an anther.
  3. Biology
    1. One of the paired, hinged shells of certain mollusks and of brachiopods.
    2. One of the two silicified halves of the cell wall of a diatom.
    3. The entire, one-piece shell of a snail and certain other mollusks.
    4. One of the sections into which the wall of a seedpod or other dehiscent fruit splits.
    5. A lidlike covering of an anther.
  4. Botany
    1. One of the sections into which the wall of a seedpod or other dehiscent fruit splits.
    2. A lidlike covering of an anther.
  5. Chiefly British An electron tube or a vacuum tube.
  6. Archaic Either half of a double or folding door.
tr.v.   valved, valv·ing, valves
  1. To provide with a valve.
  2. To control by means of a valve.

[Middle English, leaf of a door, from Latin valva; see wel-2 in Indo-European roots.]
valve'less adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Valve

Valve\, n. [L. valva the leaf, fold, or valve of a door: cf. F. valve.]

1. A door; especially, one of a pair of folding doors, or one of the leaves of such a door.

Swift through the valves the visionary fair Repassed. --Pope.

Heavily closed, . . . the valves of the barn doors. --Longfellow.

2. A lid, plug, or cover, applied to an aperture so that by its movement, as by swinging, lifting and falling, sliding, turning, or the like, it will open or close the aperture to permit or prevent passage, as of a fluid.

Note: A valve may act automatically so as to be opened by the effort of a fluid to pass in one direction, and closed by the effort to pass in the other direction, as a clack valve; or it may be opened or closed by hand or by mechanism, as a screw valve, or a slide valve.

3. (Anat.) One or more membranous partitions, flaps, or folds, which permit the passage of the contents of a vessel or cavity in one direction, but stop or retard the flow in the opposite direction; as, the ileocolic, mitral, and semilunar valves.

4. (Bot.) (a) One of the pieces into which a capsule naturally separates when it bursts. (b) One of the two similar portions of the shell of a diatom. (c) A small portion of certain anthers, which opens like a trapdoor to allow the pollen to escape, as in the barberry.

5. (Zo["o]l.) One of the pieces or divisions of bivalve or multivalve shells.

Air valve, Ball valve, Check valve, etc. See under Air. Ball, Check, etc.

Double-beat valve, a kind of balance valve usually consisting of a movable, open-ended, turban-shaped shell provided with two faces of nearly equal diameters, one above another, which rest upon two corresponding seats when the valve is closed.

Equilibrium valve. (a) A balance valve. See under Balance. (b) A valve for permitting air, steam, water, etc., to pass into or out of a chamber so as to establish or maintain equal pressure within and without.

Valve chest (Mach.), a chamber in which a valve works; especially (Steam Engine), the steam chest; -- called in England valve box, and valve casing. See Steam chest, under Steam.

Valve face (Mach.), that part of the surface of a valve which comes in contact with the valve seat.

Valve gear, or Valve motion (Steam Engine), the system of parts by which motion is given to the valve or valves for the distribution of steam in the cylinder. For an illustration of one form of valve gear, see Link motion.

Valve seat. (Mach.) (a) The fixed surface on which a valve rests or against which it presses. (b) A part or piece on which such a surface is formed.

Valve stem (Mach.), a rod attached to a valve, for moving it.

Valve yoke (Mach.), a strap embracing a slide valve and connecting it to the valve stem.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : valve
Spanish: válvula,
German: das Ventil,
Japanese: 弁
More Translations »

valve 
1387, "one of the halves of a folding door," from L. valva "section of a folding or revolving door," lit. "that which turns," related to volvere "to roll" (see vulva). Sense extended 1615 to "membranous fold regulating flow of bodily fluids;" 1659 to "mechanical device that works like a valve;" and 1661 in zoology to "halves of a hinged shell."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Main Entry: valve
Pronunciation: 'valv
Function: noun
1 : a structure especially in a vein or lymphatic that closes temporarily a passage or orificeor permits movement of fluid in one direction only
2 : any of various mechanical devices by which the flow of liquid (as blood) may be started, stopped, or regulated by a movablepart that opens, shuts, or partially obstructs one or more ports or passageways; also : the movable part of such a device
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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valve (vālv)
n.

  1. A membranous structure in a hollow organ or passage, as in an artery or a vein, that folds or closes to prevent the return flow of the body fluid passing through it.
  2. Any of various devices that regulate the flow of gases, liquids, or loose materials through piping or through apertures by opening, closing, or obstructing ports or passageways.
  3. The movable control element of such a device.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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valve   (vālv)  Pronunciation Key 
    1. Any of various mechanical devices that control the flow of liquids, gases, or loose material through pipes or channels by blocking and uncovering openings.
    2. The movable part or element of such a device.
  2. Any of various structures that prevent the backward flow of a body fluid, such as blood or lymph. Valves in the heart, veins, and lymphatic vessels contain flaps (known as cusps) that close in response to pressure created by the backflow of fluid.
  3. One of the paired hinged shells of certain mollusks, such as clams and oysters.
  4. See electron tube.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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valve electronics
UK term for a vacuum tube.
(1996-01-10)

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © 1993-2007 Denis Howe
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