cotter pin


nounMachinery.
  1. a cotter having a split end that is spread after being pushed through a hole to prevent it from working loose.

Origin of cotter pin

1
First recorded in 1890–95

Words Nearby cotter pin

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use cotter pin in a sentence

  • The piston pin of the Mercedes is of chrome nickel steel, and is retained in the piston by means of a set screw and cotter pin.

    A History of Aeronautics | E. Charles Vivian
  • Won't a cotter pin be cheaper and better in place of that nut?

  • Then replace bearings, shims and caps, draw up wheel hub tight on shaft and install cotter pin.

  • Or there may have been a little carelessness when erecting, and a cotter pin omitted.

    The Hero of Panama | F. S. Brereton
  • On every bolt use a castellated nut and a cotter pin, or an ordinary nut and a lock washer, so the bolt will not work loose.

    Aviation Engines | Victor Wilfred Pag

British Dictionary definitions for cotter pin

cotter pin

nounmachinery
  1. a split pin secured, after passing through holes in the parts to be attached, by spreading the ends

  2. a tapered pin threaded at the smaller end and secured by a nut after insertion

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