penstock

[ pen-stok ]

/ ˈpɛnˌstɒk /

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noun

a pipe conducting water from a head gate to a waterwheel.

a conduit for conveying water to a power plant.

a sluicelike contrivance used to control the flow of water.

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“Was” is used for the indicative past tense of “to be,” and “were” is only used for the subjunctive past tense.

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Origin of penstock

First recorded in 1600–10; pen² + stock

Words nearby penstock

pension mortgage, pension off, pension plan, pensive, penstemon, penstock, pent, penta-, pentachloronitrobenzene, pentachlorophenol, pentacle

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use penstock in a sentence

Penstock, pen′stok, n. a trough conveying water to a water-wheel.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 3 of 4: N-R)|Various
Adjoining the engine-well are the grating tank and penstock chamber, and with these the principal main sewer communicates.
A Comprehensive History of Norwich|A. D. Bayne
At the gate is placed a vertical iron tube called a penstock, 7½ feet in diameter and 160 feet deep.
Inventions in the Century|William Henry Doolittle
Each turbine in a penstock represents the power of 5,000 horses, and there are now ten or more employed.
Inventions in the Century|William Henry Doolittle

Patrick is with him, his devoted servant, and Miss Penstock has gone to keep house for them.
Saxe Holm's Stories|Helen Hunt Jackson

British Dictionary definitions for penstock

penstock

/ (ˈpɛnˌstɒk) /

noun

a conduit that supplies water to a hydroelectric power plant

a channel bringing water from the head gates to a water wheel

a sluice for controlling water flow

Word Origin for penstock

C17: from pen ² + stock

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 penstock

penstock

[ pĕn′stŏk′ ]

A sluice or gate used to control a flow of water.

A pipe or conduit used to carry water to a water wheel or turbine.