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

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

Four I had more fun on just in terms of getting the pistons moving on the story—a lot less chatter, and more movement.
True Detective Director Cary Fukunaga’s Journey from Pro Snowboarder to Hollywood’s Most Wanted | Marlow Stern | February 26, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
And you betcha, the Pistons lost to the Clippers that night.
Amanda Bynes, Lindsay Yenter & More Celebrities’ Week in Hell | Anna Klassen | March 16, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
Metal buttons or pistons located on the toe piece of the pedal-board were introduced by the ingenious Casavant of Canada.
The Recent Revolution in Organ Building | George Laing Miller
These toe-pistons form an additional and most convenient means for bringing the stops into and out of action.
The Recent Revolution in Organ Building | George Laing Miller
In large organs two or three adjustable toe pistons are also provided to give independent control of the Pedal organ.
The Recent Revolution in Organ Building | George Laing Miller

These pistons were placed below the keyboard whose stops they affected.
The Recent Revolution in Organ Building | George Laing Miller
Willis introduced into his organs pneumatic thumb-pistons about the year 1851.
The Recent Revolution in Organ Building | George Laing Miller

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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