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combustion chamber

American  

noun

Machinery.
  1. a chamber, as in an engine or boiler, where combustion occurs.


combustion chamber British  

noun

  1. an enclosed space in which combustion takes place, such as the space above the piston in the cylinder head of an internal-combustion engine or the chambers in a gas turbine or rocket engine in which fuel and oxidant burn

"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

combustion chamber Scientific  
  1. An enclosure in which combustion, especially of a fuel or propellant, is initiated and controlled.

  2. See also internal-combustion engine


Etymology

Origin of combustion chamber

First recorded in 1850–55

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.

However, during engine operation, moving parts such as pistons require constant lubrication, making it unavoidable that small amounts of engine oil enter the combustion chamber.

From Science Daily • May 13, 2026

The piston’s down position allows exhaust to escape and the combustion chamber to refill with fuel and air.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 24, 2026

Engineers are “implementing corrective actions, including design changes to the combustion chamber and operating parameters,” the statement said.

From Washington Post • Mar. 24, 2023

Researchers introduced boron powder into the combustion chamber using multiple nozzles that produced shock waves that slowed the air intake.

From Washington Times • Feb. 22, 2023

The combustion chamber is a space eight or ten feet long by three or four wide.

From Steel The Diary of a Furnace Worker by Walker, Charles Rumford

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