pawl

American  

[pawl] / pɔl /

noun

1. a pivoted bar adapted to engage with the teeth of a ratchet wheel or the like so as to prevent movement or to impart motion.

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verb (used with object)

1. to check or hold with a pawl.

pawl British  

/ pɔːl /

noun

1. a pivoted lever shaped to engage with a ratchet wheel to prevent motion in a particular direction

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Etymology

Origin of pawl

First recorded in 1620–30, pawl is from the Dutch word pal ratchet

Example Sentences

“This electrified roadway has the potential to accelerate autonomous vehicles at scale and turn our streets into safe, sustainable, accessible and shared transportation platforms,” Pawl said in a news release.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 27, 2021

Earlier, Pawl Bazile, the editor of Proud Boy magazine, described Mr. Young, who lives in New City, N.Y., as a “blue-collar guy” who had been with the club for about two years.

From New York Times • Oct. 19, 2018

The transcripts include a conversation between Pawl Gras, the Polish prime minister's spokesperson, and Jacek Krawiec, the director of Poland's largest oil company, Polish Orlen.

From The Guardian • Jun. 23, 2014

With the amount of anxiety and juggling," suggests San Francisco clinical psychologist Jeree Pawl, there is a risk that the next generation could grow up "thinking that they're nuisances.

From Time Magazine Archive

Pawl, pawl, n. a short bar lying against a toothed wheel to prevent a windlass, &c., from running back: a catch or click.—v.t. to stop by means of a pawl.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 3 of 4: N-R) by Various