paddle wheel

American  

noun

1. a wheel for propelling a ship, having a number of paddles entering the water more or less perpendicularly.

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paddle wheel British  

noun

1. a large wheel fitted with paddles, turned by an engine to propel a vessel on the water

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Other Word Forms

• paddle-wheel
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of paddle wheel

First recorded in 1675–85

Example Sentences

The gentle current, kicked up by a creaky paddle wheel, terrifies nobody.

From The New Yorker • Oct. 29, 2019

Later, people on Malaske’s boat saw a duck boat passenger “hanging on for dear life” to the paddle wheel of the Belle, he said.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 20, 2018

A cordoned off area of the engine room is open to visitors, and they can see large hydraulic arms powered by a 78yearold steam engine pumping back and forth, turning the paddle wheel.

From Washington Times • Sep. 26, 2015

For the purposes of this tale, just accept that it is a very large boat and that fish from Minnesota to Louisiana warn their grandchildren about the formidable red paddle wheel on the back.

From New York Times • Jun. 1, 2012

Note the paddle wheel and smokestack in the middle of the ship, as well as the masts for sails at both the bow and stern.

From "Lincoln's Last Days: The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever" by Bill O'Reilly