vane

[ veyn ]
See synonyms for vane on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a blade, plate, sail, etc., in the wheel of a windmill, to be moved by the air.

  1. any of a number of blades or plates attached radially to a rotating drum or cylinder, as in a turbine or pump, that move or are moved by a fluid, as steam, water, hot gases, or air.

  2. a person who is readily changeable or fickle.

  3. Aerospace.

    • any fixed or movable plane surface on the outside of a rocket providing directional control while the rocket is within the atmosphere.

    • a similar plane surface located in the exhaust jet of a reaction engine, providing directional control while the engine is firing.

  4. Ornithology. the web of a feather.

  5. Navigation, Surveying. either of two fixed projections for sighting an alidade or the like.

  6. Archery. feather (def. 5).

Origin of vane

1
before 1100; Middle English; Old English fana flag; cognate with German Fahne flag, Gothic fana segment of cloth; cf. gonfanon

Other words from vane

  • vaned, adjective
  • vaneless, adjective
  • mul·ti·vane, adjective

Words that may be confused with vane

Words Nearby vane

Other definitions for Vane (2 of 2)

Vane
[ veyn ]

noun
  1. Sir Henry Sir Harry Vane, 1613–62, British statesman and author.

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

How to use vane in a sentence

  • But, I refuse to believe that all the hard work that those who have marched, spoken and fought for us to progress is in vane.

    Reset America: You Answered the Call | Nick Fouriezos | April 23, 2021 | Ozy
  • Danielle Pletka, head of foreign policy at the American Enterprise Institute, has called Romney a “weather vane.”

    How Romney Is Like Reagan | Peter Beinart | June 20, 2011 | THE DAILY BEAST
  • Captain vane came from the observatory, his face blazing with excitement and oily with heat, to announce the fact.

    The Giant of the North | R.M. Ballantyne
  • For the rooster who was always perched on the weather-vane on the barn was up so high and he shone like gold.

    Seven O'Clock Stories | Robert Gordon Anderson
  • Oh seruant, vertue strengthen me.Thy presence blowes round my affections vane:You will vndoe me, if you speake againe.

    The Fatal Dowry | Philip Massinger

British Dictionary definitions for vane (1 of 2)

vane

/ (veɪn) /


noun
  1. Also called: weather vane, wind vane a flat plate or blade of metal mounted on a vertical axis in an exposed position to indicate wind direction

  2. any one of the flat blades or sails forming part of the wheel of a windmill

  1. any flat or shaped plate used to direct fluid flow, esp a stator blade in a turbine, etc

  2. a fin or plate fitted to a projectile or missile to provide stabilization or guidance

  3. ornithol the flat part of a feather, consisting of two rows of barbs on either side of the shaft

  4. surveying

    • a sight on a quadrant or compass

    • the movable marker on a levelling staff

Origin of vane

1
Old English fana; related to Old Saxon, Old High German fano, Old Norse fani, Latin pannus cloth

Derived forms of vane

  • vaned, adjective
  • vaneless, adjective

British Dictionary definitions for Vane (2 of 2)

Vane

/ (veɪn) /


noun
  1. Sir Henry, known as Sir Harry Vane. 1613–62, English Puritan statesman and colonial administrator; governor of Massachusetts (1636–37). He was executed for high treason after the Restoration

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

Scientific definitions for vane

vane

[ vān ]


  1. The flattened, weblike part of a feather, consisting of a series of barbs on either side of the rachis.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.