sprocket

[ sprok-it ]

/ ˈsprɒk ɪt /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR sprocket ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

Machinery.

Also called chainwheel, sprocket wheel.a toothed wheel engaging with a conveyor or power chain.
one tooth of such a wheel.

Carpentry. a wedge-shaped piece of wood extending a sloping roof over the eaves with a flatter pitch.

RELATED WORDS

cog, cogwheel, pinion, gearwheel

Nearby words

Origin of sprocket

First recorded in 1530–40; origin uncertain

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for sprocket

The sprocket holes must match accurately and the films must line up straight.
Motion Picture Operation, Stage Electrics and Illusions|Henry C. Horstmann
The parts to be turned are sprocket wheels which are held in the two 9-inch chucks.
Turning and Boring|Franklin D. Jones
The film contains sixteen pictures to each foot and for every picture there are four sprocket holes on each side of the film.
Motion Picture Operation, Stage Electrics and Illusions|Henry C. Horstmann
It was not until then that he saw that the chain and sprocket, which made the crossing easy, were missing.
The Man from the Bitter Roots|Caroline Lockhart

Here again one must be careful to see that the insertion is square and that the sprocket teeth mesh with the film perforations.
Practical Cinematography and Its Applications|Frederick Arthur Ambrose Talbot

British Dictionary definitions for sprocket

sprocket

/ (ˈsprɒkɪt) /

noun

Also called: sprocket wheel a relatively thin wheel having teeth projecting radially from the rim, esp one that drives or is driven by a chain

an individual tooth on such a wheel

a cylindrical wheel with teeth on one or both rims for pulling film through a camera or projector

a small wedge-shaped piece of wood used to extend a roof over the eaves

Word Origin for sprocket

C16: of unknown origin

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

Word Origin and History for sprocket

sprocket

1530s, originally a carpenters' word for a piece of timber used in framing, of unknown origin. The meaning "projection from the rim of a wheel that engages the links of a chain" is first recorded 1750.