pilot engine
noun
a locomotive sent on ahead of a railroad train to see that the way is clear and the track safe.
Origin of pilot engine
First recorded in 1830–40
Words nearby pilot engine
pilot boat,
pilot burner,
pilot cell,
pilot chart,
pilot cloth,
pilot engine,
pilot film,
pilot fish,
pilot flag,
pilot house,
pilot ladder
Example sentences from the Web for pilot engine
The coming of the pilot-engine heightens the intensity of watching, for now soon the king will come.
Quiet Talks on the Crowned Christ of Revelation |S. D. Gordon
British Dictionary definitions for pilot engine
pilot engine
noun
a locomotive that leads one or more other locomotives at the head of a train of coaches or wagons