definitions

ball cock

or ball·cock

|

noun

a device for regulating the supply of water in a tank, cistern, or the like, consisting essentially of a valve connected to a hollow floating ball which by its rise or fall shuts or opens the valve.

RELATED CONTENT

Which Came First: Turkey The Bird, Or Turkey The Nation?The republic of Turkey (look north of Egypt, east of Greece) isn't exactly a breeding ground for the bird that Americans associate with Thanksgiving. In fact, the turkey is native to North America ... so, why do they share the same name?
READ MORE
8 Words For CelebrationRead more in this article about some frequently asked questions and fun facts related to our definitions.
READ MORE

Nearby words

ball and ring, ball bearing, ball boy, ball clay, ball club, ball cock, ball control, ball fern, ball foot, ball game, ball girl

Origin of ball cock

First recorded in 1780–90
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for ball cock

British Dictionary definitions for ball cock

ball cock

noun

a device for regulating the flow of a liquid into a tank, cistern, etc, consisting of a floating ball mounted at one end of an arm and a valve on the other end that opens and closes as the ball falls and rises with the water level in the cistern
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