fan belt

American

noun

(in automotive vehicles) a belt, driven by the crankshaft of an engine, that turns a fan for drawing cooling air through the radiator.

fan belt British

noun

any belt that drives a fan, esp the belt that drives a cooling fan together with a dynamo or alternator in a car engine

"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

Etymology

Origin of fan belt

First recorded in 1920–25

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.

Inside, investigators discovered a fan belt hanging from the ceiling.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 21, 2025

He’s careful and wise, the kind of guy you’d want assessing what’s wrong with your fan belt, your nuclear reactor, or your representative democracy.

From Slate • Nov. 4, 2020

The Cardinals tend not to don jewelry that resembles a bronzed fan belt, a superficial statement about their approach.

From Washington Post • Oct. 10, 2015

She knew that no one would be coming to help her and a game scout replace their truck's broken fan belt.

From National Geographic • Aug. 8, 2015

Along with waiting for him and waiting for some way to get a new fan belt, he had a legitimate reason to dawdle.

From "Song of Solomon" by Toni Morrison

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023