Dictionary.com

Popular Searches

 Thesaurus.com

Whyte classification

American  
[hwahyt, wahyt klas-uh-fi-key-shuhn] / ʰwaɪt, ˈwaɪt klæs ə fɪˌkeɪ ʃən /

noun

  1. a system for classifying steam locomotives according to the total number of wheels on the front trucks, drivers, and rear trucks, in that order. For example, a Pacific locomotive is designated as 4-6-2.

Etymology

Origin of Whyte classification

After U.S. railroad engineer Frederick M. Whyte (1865–1941), who devised the system for the New York Central Railroad c1900

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.