pinion
1[ pin-yuhn ]
/ ˈpɪn yən /
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noun
Machinery.
- a gear with a small number of teeth, especially one engaging with a rack or larger gear.
- a shaft or spindle cut with teeth engaging with a gear.
Metalworking. a gear driving a roll in a rolling mill.
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Origin of pinion
11650–60; <French pignon cogwheel, Middle French peignon, derivative of peigne comb, variant of pigne<Latin pectin- (stem of pecten) comb; see pecten
OTHER WORDS FROM pinion
pin·ion·less, adjectivepin·ion·like, adjectiveWords nearby pinion
pinheaded, pinhole, pinhole camera, pinhole pupil, piniform, pinion, Piniós, pinite, pinitol, pin joint, pink
Definition for pinion (2 of 2)
pinion2
[ pin-yuhn ]
/ ˈpɪn yən /
noun
verb (used with object)
Origin of pinion
21400–50; late Middle English pynyon<Middle French pignon wing, pinion <Vulgar Latin *pinniōn (stem of pinniō), derivative of Latin pinna feather, wing, fin
OTHER WORDS FROM pinion
un·pin·ioned, adjectiveDictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for pinion
British Dictionary definitions for pinion (1 of 2)
pinion1
/ (ˈpɪnjən) /
noun
mainly poetic a bird's wing
the part of a bird's wing including the flight feathers
verb (tr)
to hold or bind (the arms) of (a person) so as to restrain or immobilize him
to confine or shackle
to make (a bird) incapable of flight by removing that part of (the wing) from which the flight feathers grow
Word Origin for pinion
C15: from Old French pignon wing, from Latin pinna wing
British Dictionary definitions for pinion (2 of 2)
pinion2
/ (ˈpɪnjən) /
noun
a cogwheel that engages with a larger wheel or rack, which it drives or by which it is driven
Word Origin for pinion
C17: from French pignon cogwheel, from Old French peigne comb, from Latin pecten comb; see pecten
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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