capstan
Americannoun
-
any of various windlasses, rotated in a horizontal plane by hand or machinery, for winding in ropes, cables, etc.
-
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.
noun
-
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
-
any similar device, such as the rotating shaft in a tape recorder that pulls the tape past the head
Etymology
Origin of capstan
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
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Stevenson’s camera gets into the machines — there’s a good deal of hot capstan, video-head and pinch-roller action.
From New York Times ● Sep. 10, 2020
Oxen will be brought in to secure the bridge using a capstan, a vertical-axle rotating machine that applies force to ropes and is used to raise sails.
From Washington Times ● Apr. 26, 2015
But this time, as the men throw their weight against the capstan arm, the rope tightens.
From Time Magazine Archive
Babcock fiddles with pulleys, then applies a greasing of Ivory soap where rope meets capstan.
From Time Magazine Archive
A baffled, bewildered crew blundered on deck, and walked round the capstan.
From "Carry On, Mr. Bowditch" by Jean Lee Latham
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
