rack-and-pinion
[ rak-uh n-pin-yuh n ]
/ ˈræk ənˈpɪn yən /
adjective
of or relating to a mechanism in which a rack engages a pinion: rack-and-pinion steering.
Origin of rack-and-pinion
First recorded in 1900–05
Words nearby rack-and-pinion
rack out,
rack rail,
rack railway,
rack saw,
rack up,
rack-and-pinion,
rack-rent,
rackboard,
racket,
racket amputation,
racket press
Definition for rack-and-pinion (2 of 3)
Definition for rack-and-pinion (3 of 3)
rack
1
[ rak ]
/ ræk /
noun
verb (used with object)
Verb Phrases
rack out, Slang.
to go to bed; go to sleep: I racked out all afternoon.
rack up,
- Pool. to put (the balls) in a rack.
- Informal. to tally, accumulate, or amass as an achievement or score: The corporation racked up the greatest profits in its history.
Origin of rack
1
1250–1300; Middle English
rakke, rekke (noun) < Middle Dutch
rac, rec, recke; compare Middle Low German
reck, German
Reck
OTHER WORDS FROM rack
rack·ing·ly, adverbExample sentences from the Web for rack-and-pinion
A cheap instrument has an open face and plain frame, with sliding vernier instead of rack-and-pinion motion.
A Treatise on Meteorological Instruments |Henry NegrettiNo odour, no teeth-disturbing grind of rack-and-pinion, no trumpeting, with that machine!
Buried Alive: A Tale of These Days |Arnold BennettA rack-and-pinion movement for elevating or lowering the sliding pillar would be useful.
British Dictionary definitions for rack-and-pinion (1 of 7)
rack-and-pinion
noun
a device for converting rotary into linear motion and vice versa, in which a gearwheel (the pinion) engages with a flat toothed bar (the rack)
adjective
(of a type of steering gear in motor vehicles) having a track rod with a rack along part of its length that engages with a pinion attached to the steering column
British Dictionary definitions for rack-and-pinion (2 of 7)
rack
1
/ (ræk) /
noun
verb (tr)
See also
rack up
Derived forms of rack
racker, nounWord Origin for rack
C14
rekke, probably from Middle Dutch
rec framework; related to Old High German
recchen to stretch, Old Norse
rekja to spread out
undefined rack
See
wrack 1
British Dictionary definitions for rack-and-pinion (3 of 7)
rack
2
/ (ræk) /
noun
destruction; wreck (obsolete except in the phrase go to rack and ruin)
Word Origin for rack
C16: variant of
wrack
1
British Dictionary definitions for rack-and-pinion (4 of 7)
rack
3
/ (ræk) /
noun
another word for single-foot, a gait of the horse
Word Origin for rack
C16: perhaps based on
rock ²
British Dictionary definitions for rack-and-pinion (5 of 7)
rack
4
/ (ræk) /
noun
a group of broken clouds moving in the wind
verb
(intr)
(of clouds) to be blown along by the wind
Word Origin for rack
Old English
wrǣc what is driven; related to Gothic
wraks persecutor, Swedish
vrak wreckage
British Dictionary definitions for rack-and-pinion (6 of 7)
rack
5
/ (ræk) /
verb (tr)
to clear (wine, beer, etc) as by siphoning it off from the dregs
to fill a container with (beer, wine, etc)
Word Origin for rack
C15: from Old Provençal
arraca, from
raca dregs of grapes after pressing
British Dictionary definitions for rack-and-pinion (7 of 7)
rack
6
/ (ræk) /
noun
the neck or rib section of mutton, pork, or veal
Word Origin for rack
Old English
hrace; related to Old High German
rahho, Danish
harke, Swedish
harkla to clear one's throat
Idioms and Phrases with rack-and-pinion
rack