waterwheel

or wa·ter wheel

[ waw-ter-hweel, -weel, wot-er- ]

/ ˈwɔ tərˌʰwil, -ˌwil, ˈwɒt ər- /

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noun

a wheel or turbine turned by the weight or momentum of water and used to operate machinery.

a wheel with buckets for raising or drawing water, as a noria.

the paddle wheel of a steamboat.

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Origin of waterwheel

late Middle English word dating back to 1375–1425; see origin at water, wheel

Words nearby waterwheel

waterward, Water, water everywhere, / Nor any drop to drink, water wave, waterway, waterweed, waterwheel, water willow, water wings, water witch, water witching, waterworks

How to use waterwheel in a sentence

Ceramic pipes were made to carry water from the spring to a waterwheel.
Space Prison|Tom Godwin
They are as swift as a waterwheel, each of them past another, one of them to the King's room, the other to the fire.
The Harvard Classics, Volume 49, Epic and Saga|Various
The whole was moved by an overshot waterwheel placed at the Bellevue dock.
Scientific American, Volume 40, No. 13, March 29, 1879|Various
The little buckets on the waterwheel keep an almost endless stream flowing into the irrigation ditch.
Birdseye Views of Far Lands|James T. Nichols

The next morning the girl heard the noise of the waterwheel, and she opened the lattice and looked out of the window.
The Grey Fairy Book|Various

British Dictionary definitions for waterwheel

water wheel

noun

a simple water-driven turbine consisting of a wheel having vanes set axially across its rim, used to drive machinery

a wheel with buckets attached to its rim for raising water from a stream, pond, etc

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