rotatory

[roh-tuh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee]

See more synonyms for rotatory on Thesaurus.com

adjective

pertaining to or of the nature of rotation: rotatory motion.
rotating, as an object.
passing or following in rotation or succession.

causing rotation, as a muscle.

Origin of rotatory

1745–55; < New Latin rotātōrius, equivalent to Latin rotā(re) (see rotate¹) + -tōrius -tory¹

Related formsun·ro·ta·to·ry, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for rotatory

whirling, spinning, whirligig, revolving, vertiginous, gyral, gyratory, rotating, rotational, rotatory, rotary, rotative, vortical, vorticose

Examples from the Web for rotatory

Historical Examples of rotatory

It will have a rotatory motion; and this it has been seen to have.
Essays: Scientific, Political, & Speculative, Vol. I
Herbert Spencer
In this rotatory motion they aid themselves by using the legs freely.
The Hunters' Feast
Mayne Reid
That, as I understand it, is a stationary, while this is a rotatory system.
The Monikins
J. Fenimore Cooper
Was it necessary, therefore, to suppose a second, a kind of rotatory movement?
Everyday Objects
W. H. Davenport Adams
The radius and ulna are not ankylosed, but are incapable of any rotatory movement.
The Vertebrate Skeleton
Sidney H. Reynolds

British Dictionary definitions for rotatory

rotatory

less commonly rotative (ˈrəʊtətɪv)

adjective

of, relating to, possessing, or causing rotation

Derived Formsrotatively, adverb

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

rotatory in Medicine

rotatory

[rō′tə-tôr′ē]

adj.

Of, relating to, causing, or characterized by rotation.
Occurring or proceeding in alternation or succession.