piston

[ pis-tuhn ]

See synonyms for piston on Thesaurus.com

noun

a disk or cylindrical part tightly fitting and moving within a cylinder, either to compress or move a fluid collected in the cylinder, as air or water, or to transform energy imparted by a fluid entering or expanding inside the cylinder, as compressed air, explosive gases, or steam, into a rectilinear motion usually transformed into rotary motion by means of a connecting rod.
a pumplike valve used to change the pitch in a cornet or the like.

Origin of piston

First recorded in 1695–1705; from French, from Italian pistone “piston,” a learned alteration of pestone “large pestle,” equivalent to pest(are) “to pound” (variant of Medieval Latin pistare, derivative of Latin pīstus, past participle of pīnsere “to pound, crush”) + -one augmentative suffix

Other words from piston

pis·ton·like, adjective
sub·pis·ton, noun

Words Nearby piston

Other definitions for Piston (2 of 2)

Piston

[ pis-tuhn ]

noun

Walter, 1894–1976, U.S. composer.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use piston in a sentence

In the experiments, a piston repeatedly compressed 460 bamboo rods scattered inside a cylinder.
Experiments hint at why bird nests are so sturdy | Emily Conover | May 12, 2022 | Science News
To that end, scientists have developed nanoscale versions of many machine parts, such as motors, pistons, pumps, wrenches, and propellers.
This Week’s Awesome Tech Stories From Around the Web (Through April 30) | Singularity Hub Staff | April 30, 2022 | Singularity Hub
The piston is responsible for compressing air and fuel to be ignited, and is both balanced and timed by the crankshaft.
The new Corvette Z06 is a ruthless machine with a sound to match | Rob Stumpf | October 27, 2021 | Popular-Science
Froghoppers produce suction power with a pumplike structure in their heads, where muscles pull on a membrane to generate negative pressures, akin to a piston.
Froghoppers are the super-suckers of the animal world | Jonathan Lambert | July 13, 2021 | Science News
A steam engine is a device that transforms energy of one sort into energy of a different sort, and it can perform useful tasks, such as moving a piston, without ever violating that principle of conservation of energy.
Our Little Life Is Rounded with Possibility - Issue 102: Hidden Truths | Chiara Marletto | June 9, 2021 | Nautilus

It is a very simple plan, and will be perfectly tight; it is by restoring an equilibrium on both sides of the piston.
Life of Richard Trevithick, Volume II (of 2) | Francis Trevithick
The water-piston is 10 inches in diameter, drawing and forcing 35 feet perpendicular, equal beam.
Life of Richard Trevithick, Volume II (of 2) | Francis Trevithick
When she had finished her up-stroke the steam passed from under the pole on to the top of the piston in the cylinder.
Life of Richard Trevithick, Volume II (of 2) | Francis Trevithick
Then he came down from London and found that the piston of his engine was half an inch smaller in diameter than the cylinder.
Life of Richard Trevithick, Volume II (of 2) | Francis Trevithick
The steam in ordinary working was shut off when the piston had moved from an eighth to a quarter of its stroke.
Life of Richard Trevithick, Volume II (of 2) | Francis Trevithick

British Dictionary definitions for piston

piston

/ (ˈpɪstən) /

noun

a disc or cylindrical part that slides to and fro in a hollow cylinder. In an internal-combustion engine it is forced to move by the expanding gases in the cylinder head and is attached by a pivoted connecting rod to a crankshaft or flywheel, thus converting reciprocating motion into rotation

Origin of piston

C18: via French from Old Italian pistone, from pistare to pound, grind, from Latin pinsere to crush, beat

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 piston

piston

[ pĭs′tən ]

A solid cylinder or disk that fits snugly into a hollow cylinder and moves back and forth under the pressure of a fluid (typically a hot gas formed by combustion, as in many engines), or moves or compresses a fluid, as in a pump or compressor.

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