tourbillon
Americannoun
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Horology. a frame for the escapement of a timepiece, especially a watch, geared to the going train in such a way as to rotate the escapement about once a minute in order to minimize positional error.
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a firework that rises spirally.
Between two spectacular pinwheels, they launched a series of silvery tourbillons.
Etymology
Origin of tourbillon
First recorded in 1470–80; earlier turbilloun, from Middle French to(u)rbillon, from unattested Vulgar Latin turbiliōnem, dissimilated variant of turbiniōnem, accusative of turbiniō “whirlwind”; see turbine, -ion
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.
It has an inclined tourbillon, a feature aimed at improving accuracy by counteracting gravity, which adds to its rarity in the watch world.
From Salon ● Dec. 19, 2024
He had a collection of tourbillon watches and the latest stylish haircut.
From New York Times ● Feb. 5, 2019
It features a manual-wound skeleton tourbillon, a 72-hour power reserve, and a whopping 260 carats of Emerald-cut diamonds adorning everything from the crown to case.
From Golf Digest ● Jun. 28, 2018
Instead, he decorated the delicate parts of a stainless steel tourbillon for the Swiss watch brand Richard Mille; the watch, which became available in June, retails for $800,000.
From New York Times ● Nov. 13, 2016
But I arrived by a quicker maneuver—a whirling gust, a tourbillon of the most terrific, hurled the biplane sidelong to destruction.
From Master Tales of Mystery, Volume 3 by Reynolds, Francis J. (Francis Joseph)
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.
