gyroscope

American  

[jahy-ruh-skohp] / ˈdʒaɪ rəˌskoʊp /

noun

1. an apparatus consisting of a rotating wheel so mounted that its axis can turn freely in certain or all directions, and capable of maintaining the same absolute direction in space in spite of movements of the mountings and surrounding parts: used to maintain equilibrium, determine direction, etc.

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gyroscope British  

/ ˌdʒaɪrəˈskɒpɪk, ˈdʒaɪrəˌskəʊp /

noun

1. Sometimes shortened to: gyro.  a device containing a disc rotating on an axis that can turn freely in any direction so that the disc resists the action of an applied couple and tends to maintain the same orientation in space irrespective of the movement of the surrounding structure

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gyroscope Scientific  

/ jī′rə-skōp′ /

1. An instrument consisting of a heavy disk or wheel spun rapidly about an axis like a top. The angular momentum of the disk causes it to resist changes in the direction of its axis of rotation, due to the principle of conservation of angular momentum. Because of the gyroscope's tendency to remain oriented in one direction, it is used as a stabilizing device in missiles, as well as in the navigation and piloting systems of airplanes, ships, rockets, and other vehicles.

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Other Word Forms

• gyroscopic adjective
• gyroscopically adverb
• gyroscopics noun

Etymology

Origin of gyroscope

First recorded in 1855–60; borrowed from the French word gyroscope, a combination of gyro- ( Greek gŷros meaning “ring, circle”) + -scope ( New Latin -scopium, from Greek skopeîn meaning “to look at”). It was coined by French physicist Léon Foucault in 1852, and so named because the purpose of a gyroscope is to show the rotation of the earth through the observation of a wheel on its axis.

Example Sentences

This time, a human gyroscope leads the way.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 5, 2026

Rare-earth elements are mostly used to make high-powered magnets — those needed to manufacture a gyroscope for a fighter jet, for example.

From MarketWatch • Oct. 30, 2025

The agency is now invoking a contingency plan: a “one-gyro” mode that keeps the other functioning gyroscope in reserve.

From Science Magazine • Jun. 4, 2024

A chip fixed on a gyroscope inside the ball sends data 500 times per second to record the point at which it is kicked.

From Washington Times • Nov. 15, 2023

The hours go by and you lose your gyroscope; your mind starts to roam.

From "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien