axle

[ak-suhl]

noun

1. Machinery.,  the pin, bar, shaft, or the like, on which or by means of which a wheel or pair of wheels rotates.

2. the spindle at either end of an axletree.

3. an axletree.

axle

/ ˈæksəl /

noun

1. a bar or shaft on which a wheel, pair of wheels, or other rotating member revolves

Other Word Forms

• axled adjective
• unaxled adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of axle¹

before 900; Middle English axel, Old English eaxl shoulder, crossbeam (in eaxle-gespann ); cognate with Old Frisian ax ( e ) le, Old Saxon ahsla, Old High German ahsala shoulder ( German Achsel ), Old Norse ǫxl, Latin āla (< derivative of *akslā )

Word History and Origins

Origin of axle¹

C17: from Old Norse öxull; related to German Achse; see _axis ¹

Example Sentences

Then I drilled a hole in the middle of the two big circles and put a little post in there, like the axle of a wheel.

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“We are continuing to get the company into a state of constantly stepping up into the scale we are at, so I don’t want to get wrapped around an IPO axle.”

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They then raised the church 4 feet off the ground, supported by steel beams, and put it on giant remote-controlled transporters with 56 axles.

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Ferrari started lifting the hood on its first fully electric vehicle at an event that highlighted a new electric axle, motor and battery pack set to be made in-house.

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A coroner concluded Mr Burton's death was accidental as the axle stand which was holding up the vehicle had tipped onto its side, trapping him underneath.

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