milling machine

American  

noun

1. a machine tool for rotating a cutter milling cutter to produce plane or formed surfaces on a workpiece, usually by moving the work past the cutter.

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milling machine British  

noun

1. a machine tool in which a horizontal arbor or vertical spindle rotates a cutting tool above a horizontal table, which is used to move a workpiece

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Etymology

Origin of milling machine

First recorded in 1875–80

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

milling machine

It was the sort of place campaign consultants crave, a factory with 35 workers founded in 1981 in a one-car garage with a milling machine and a lathe.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 27, 2022

Once 3-D modeling was complete, the files were programmed into a computer-controlled milling machine that resembles a cross between a band saw and a lathe.

From Scientific American ● Jun. 29, 2022

Rusak cuts the segments, in black or milky white resin, into interlocking parts using a CNC milling machine, which leaves bits of raw plant exposed.

From New York Times ● Oct. 12, 2021

The milling machine had been converted from steam power to run via a drive shaft attached to a tractor.

From BBC ● Nov. 5, 2018

“Your father was pretty mad,” he said over the shriek of a milling machine.

From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam