radial engine

American

noun

Aeronautics.

an internal-combustion engine having the cylinders arranged in radial opposition, found mainly on older aircraft.

radial engine British

noun

an internal-combustion engine having a number of cylinders arranged about a central crankcase

"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

Etymology

Origin of radial engine

First recorded in 1905–10

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Wright engine, the first 14-cylinder, two-row radial engine in commercial use.

From Time Magazine Archive

The tail propellers were reduced to one, a seven-cylinder Warner radial engine was installed, the body was decently covered, slicked with windshield and windows.

From Time Magazine Archive

The great handicap of the radial engine is that its spreading cylinders create wind resistance and so slow an airplane's speed.

From Time Magazine Archive

Stearman-�3-seat open cockpit biplane; wings unequal; strutted to fuselage; fuselage slim; sharp curves on tail units; radial engine; split axled wheels close to body.

From Time Magazine Archive

It was a yellow two-seater with a 450-horsepower radial engine, a low wing, and retractable landing gear.

From "Flying to the Moon: An Astronaut's Story" by Michael Collins

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023