gimbals

[ jim-buhlz, gim- ]

/ ˈdʒɪm bəlz, ˈgɪm- /

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noun (used with a singular verb)

Sometimes gimbal. a contrivance, consisting of a ring or base on an axis, that permits an object, as a ship's compass, mounted in or on it to tilt freely in any direction, in effect suspending the object so that it will remain horizontal even when its support is tipped.

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Also called gimbal ring .

Origin of gimbals

First recorded in 1570–80; alteration of gimmal

Words nearby gimbals

gilt, gilt bronze, gilt-edged, gilthead, Gilyak, gimbals, Gimbel, gimcrack, gimcrackery, gimel, gimlet

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use gimbals in a sentence

When he opened his eyes he looked up and saw a hanging-lamp that creaked on its gimbals as it swayed to the roll of the schooner.
Blow The Man Down|Holman Day
We both stepped to the open skylight and peered down through it at the barometer, which hung in gimbals from the fore transom.
A Middy of the King|Harry Collingwood
The meter is in gimbals and is directed by a conical rudder which keeps it facing the stream with its axis horizontal.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 14, Slice 1|Various
When fitted in gimbals, it can be used at sea with much advantage.
A Treatise on Meteorological Instruments|Henry Negretti

To effect this they are suspended in gimbals by a brass arm.
A Treatise on Meteorological Instruments|Henry Negretti

British Dictionary definitions for gimbals

gimbals

/ (ˈdʒɪmbəlz, ˈɡɪm-) /

pl n

a device, consisting of two or three pivoted rings at right angles to each other, that provides free suspension in all planes for an object such as a gyroscope, compass, chronometer, etcAlso called: gimbal ring

Word Origin for gimbals

C16: variant of earlier gimmal finger ring, from Old French gemel, from Latin gemellus, diminutive of geminus twin

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