capstan

[ kap-stuhn, -stan ]

noun
  1. any of various windlasses, rotated in a horizontal plane by hand or machinery, for winding in ropes, cables, etc.

  2. a rotating spindle or shaft, powered by an electric motor, that transports magnetic tape past the heads of a tape recorder at a constant speed.

Origin of capstan

1
1350–1400; Middle English <Middle French cabestan(t) <Old Provençal cabestan, variant of cabestran, presumably present participle of *cabest(r)ar, a verbal derivative of cabestre halter <Latin capistrum

Words Nearby capstan

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How to use capstan in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for capstan

capstan

/ (ˈkæpstən) /


noun
  1. a machine with a drum that rotates round a vertical spindle and is turned by a motor or lever, used for hauling in heavy ropes, etc

  2. any similar device, such as the rotating shaft in a tape recorder that pulls the tape past the head

Origin of capstan

1
C14: from Old Provençal cabestan, from Latin capistrum a halter, from capere to seize

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