idle wheel

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noun Machinery.

a wheel for transmitting power and motion between a driving and a driven part, either by friction or by means of teeth.

idle pulley.

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Origin of idle wheel

First recorded in 1795–1805

Words nearby idle wheel

idle pulley, idler, idler shaft, idlesse, idle time, idle wheel, idly, IDN, Ido, idocrase, idol

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

How to use idle wheel in a sentence

They were racing toward the corner of Tompkins and Myrtle avenues with Johnson at the wheel when another call came over the radio.
'Please Don't Die!': The Frantic Battle to Save Murdered Cops|Michael Daly|December 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And in the summer, when the lift is idle, it feeds juice into the local community.
Solar Powered Ski Lift|The Daily Beast|November 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“They think Putin is the only evil in Russia and dream about getting rid of him,” he said, tightening his grip on the wheel.
Think Putin’s Bad? Wait for the Next Guy|Anna Nemtsova|November 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Maybe the wheel will turn again, and heterosexuality will come to seem edgy.
How Straight World Stole ‘Gay’: The Last Gasp of the ‘Lumbersexual’|Tim Teeman|November 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST

It was only a matter of time that the wheel turned its full revolution.
How Straight World Stole ‘Gay’: The Last Gasp of the ‘Lumbersexual’|Tim Teeman|November 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It's an idle question, I know; wise men and musty philosophers say that regrets are foolish.
Raw Gold|Bertrand W. Sinclair
He worketh under correction, and seeketh to rest: let his hands be idle, and he seeketh liberty.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version|Various
Never again would he sit behind that wheel rejoicing in the insolence of speed.
The Joyous Adventures of Aristide Pujol|William J. Locke
There was a deep silence throughout the whole bivouac; some were sleeping, and those who watched were in no humour for idle chat.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
He deposited it on the vacant seat, clambered up behind the wheel, and started.
The Joyous Adventures of Aristide Pujol|William J. Locke

British Dictionary definitions for idle wheel

idle wheel

noun

a gearwheel interposed between two others to transmit torque without changing the direction of rotation to the velocity ratioAlso called: idler

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