wind tunnel

[ wind ]
See synonyms for wind tunnel on Thesaurus.com
nounAeronautics.
  1. a tubular chamber or structure in which a steady current of air can be maintained at a controlled velocity, equipped with devices for measuring and recording forces and moments on scale models of complete aircraft or of their parts or, sometimes, on full-scale aircraft or their parts.

Origin of wind tunnel

1
An Americanism dating back to 1910–15

Words Nearby wind tunnel

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use wind tunnel in a sentence

  • It's hard in the wind tunnel of fame and managers and fans and appearance fees.

  • He also wants to open an indoor skydiving center, complete with a vertical wind tunnel.

    Lotto Death Curse | Anneli Rufus | February 19, 2010 | THE DAILY BEAST
  • The wind tunnel has proved that by exhaustive research—and don't forget how quickly I can grow!

  • It looked like the inside of a giant wind tunnel brilliantly lit now with powerful searchlights.

    The Brain | Alexander Blade
  • The best angles of incidence for these varying factors are found by means of wind-tunnel research and practical trial and error.

  • The best degree of fineness for any given velocity is found by means of wind-tunnel research.

  • Dio staggered out of the wind-tunnel and sagged down beside Jill.

    A World is Born | Leigh Douglass Brackett

British Dictionary definitions for wind tunnel

wind tunnel

/ (wɪnd) /


noun
  1. a chamber for testing the aerodynamic properties of aircraft, aerofoils, etc, in which a current of air can be maintained at a constant velocity

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for wind tunnel

wind tunnel

  1. A chamber through which air is blown at controlled speeds to simulate the motion of objects placed in the chamber through the air, used to study the aerodynamic properties of objects such as automobiles, airplanes, and missiles.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.