rotor
Americannoun
-
rotors
plural
-
Electricity. a rotating member of a machine.
-
Aeronautics. a system of rotating airfoils, as the horizontal ones of a helicopter or of the compressor of a jet engine.
-
any of a number of tall, cylindrical devices mounted on a special ship rotor ship and rotated in such a way that the Magnus effect of wind impinging on the cylinders is used to drive and maneuver the vessel.
-
(in a self-winding watch) a weight eccentrically mounted on an arbor for keeping the mainspring wound.
noun
-
the rotating member of a machine or device, esp the armature of a motor or generator or the rotating assembly of a turbine Compare stator
-
a device having blades radiating from a central hub that is rotated to produce thrust to lift and propel a helicopter
-
the revolving arm of the distributor of an internal-combustion engine
-
a violent rolling wave of air occurring in the lee of a mountain or hill, in which the air rotates about a horizontal axis
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of rotor
First recorded in 1873; short for rotator
Vocabulary lists containing rotor
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.
See Examples For:
Several geeky flourishes were added, including a quote attributed to Altman, “COMPUTE IS DESTINY,” which was engraved in capital letters around each watch’s rotor.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
Video of the incident emerged showing the cockpit apparently becoming detached from the rotor.
From Barron's ● Jul. 16, 2026
Videos posted on Facebook from Long Beach also showed flashes and bangs in neighborhoods, and the loud rotor of a helicopter overhead.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 6, 2026
One lowly bacterium possesses a flagellum—a tiny tail or rotor.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 16, 2026
The Marine One helicopter could land on one side of the house, its rotor blades kicking up gale-force winds and slamming tree branches, but inside the residence we’d hear nothing.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
Over the next few months, workers at APL will bolt on eight three-bladed rotors that will allow Dragonfly to fly several miles at a hop above the alien surface.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 22, 2026
"By changing the distance between the magnetic layers, we could drive the system into a regime of competing interactions where the rotors constantly reorganize as they slide," says Hongri Gu, who carried out the experiments.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 22, 2026
Firefighters carrying extinguishers could be seen patrolling the area, as sparks flew from the rotors of at least three lanterns, AFP journalists at the event saw.
From Barron's ● Dec. 19, 2025
On 11 January, the crew said they were woken by the sound of helicopter rotors overhead and a US Navy ship pulling alongside.
From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2025
“The letters H-W-B seem random enough. They are random, to any outside viewer. Except for one thing—I haven’t spun the rotors since I set up the machine. I should have, but I forgot to.”
From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
