epicycle
noun
a small circle the center of which moves around in the circumference of a larger circle: used in Ptolemaic astronomy to account for observed periodic irregularities in planetary motions.
epicyclic
-
a word derived from
epicycle.
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.
Wright showed that the epicyclic theories could be translated into epicyclic gear trains with pin-and-slot mechanisms to display the planets’ variable motions.
From Scientific American ● Dec. 14, 2021
Following Price, Wright proposed that an extensive epicyclic system—the two-circles idea the Greeks used to explain the odd reversing motions of the planets—had been mounted on the main drive wheel.
From Scientific American ● Dec. 14, 2021
I figured out how the mechanism calculated the epicyclic theory by building on a remarkable observation by Wright.
From Scientific American ● Dec. 14, 2021
The ancient Greeks did not know about elliptical orbits, but they explained the moon’s subtle motion by combining two circular motions in what is called an epicyclic theory.
From Scientific American ● Dec. 14, 2021
All the variable speed gears at present made consist of toothed wheel mechanism either at the hub or crank-bracket, and nearly all are based on the same epicyclic train of toothed wheels.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 3, Slice 7 "Bible" to "Bisectrix" by Various
