α. 1700s– propeller, 1800s– propeler (chiefly U.S., nonstandard).
β. 1800s– propellor (nonstandard).
propellern.
/prəˈpɛlə/, U.S. /prəˈpɛlər/, /proʊˈpɛlər/ 1.
a. A mechanical device for propelling something (in quot. 1780: a turbine waterwheel). Now only as in senses 1b, 1c.
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society > occupation and work > equipment > machine > parts of machines > parts which provide power > [noun] > propeller
propeller1780
1780 Brit. Patent 1252 A Grant unto William Bache of Birmingham, for his new invented instrument or machine which he calls by the name of a Propeller... Propeller for the use of communicating power to mills, forges, and sundry other important purposes.
1827 Gentleman's Mag. 97 ii. 546/1 A triple perch,..beneath which two propellers, in going up a hill, may be set in motion, somewhat similar to the action of a horse's legs.
b. Originally: †any mechanical device for propelling a ship or other vessel, fixed to the vessel itself (obsolete). Subsequently: spec. one consisting of two, three, or four blades set at an angle on a central shaft or boss which revolves, and typically located at or near the stern (also called screw propeller).
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society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > equipment of vessel > propulsion machinery > [noun] > propeller
propeller1809
prop1974
society > occupation and work > equipment > machine > parts of machines > parts which provide power > [noun] > propeller > for propelling vessels
propeller1809
1809 Fulton U.S. Patent Specif. The successful construction of steam boats depends on their parts being well proportioned, whether wheels or any other propellers be used.
1838 Civil Engineer & Architect's Jrnl. 1 385/1 The engine will be placed amidships,..and the propeller or paddle, which is under the stern, will be worked by a communicating shaft.
1839 Mechanics' Mag. 31 226 The idea of a screw propeller seems to have been formed very early in the history of steam navigation.
1858 Pat. Off. Abridgm., Marine Propulsion 32 In a.d. 1780 Jouffroy used an engine for his boat with the duck foot propeller.
1870 Daily News 22 Apr. The City of Brussels left New York on the 28th March, and lost her propeller three days afterwards.
1885 J. Runciman Skippers & Shellbacks 7 The throb of the propeller ceased.
1944 J. Hersey in J. E. Lewis Mammoth Bk. War Correspondents (2001) 358 A huge propeller pounded by near him and the awful turbulence of the destroyer's wake took him down.
1990 Lifeboat (RNLI) Summer 264/1 The fishing vessel had fouled her propeller and was being driven ashore.
1997 N. DeMille Plum Island xxxv. 468 I pulled out the shear pin that held the propeller to the drive shaft.
c. Originally: †a mechanical device on an aircraft for providing thrust (obsolete). Subsequently: spec. one consisting of two or more blades set at an angle on a central shaft or boss which revolves, and in modern aircraft typically located on the front of the wings or on the nose (also called airscrew); (formerly) †= pusher n. 2c (obsolete; cf. tractor n. 2d). Also: any of various other devices of similar form which move air by rapidly turning in it.In aircraft the blades have the cross-section of an aerofoil, whereas in ships they are typically twisted.
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society > travel > air or space travel > a means of conveyance through the air > aeroplane > parts of aircraft > means of propulsion > [noun] > aircraft engine > propeller
airscrew1675
air wheel1832
propeller1842
aeroscrew1902
prop1914
stick1917
1842 W. S. Henson Brit. Patent 9478 2 In the place of the movement or power for onward progress being obtained by movement of the extended surface or plane, as is the case with the wings of birds, I apply suitable paddle wheels or other proper mechanical propellers.
1843 G. Cayley in Mechanics' Mag. 8 Apr. 278/1 The broad horizontal rudder, or tail, H, capable of being turned on its hinge to any angle,..gives the power of ascent and descent when the propellers are used.
1871 Eng. Mech. 27 Jan. 448/2 Through the instrumentality of the hollow bladed screw-propeller..shall we..be enabled to sustain and propel the mechanism..through the atmosphere.
1917 R. B. Matthews Aviation Pocket-bk. iv. 93 An airscrew is described as a tractor when placed in front of the main planes, and as a propeller when fitted behind.
1919 B. Ruck Disturbing Charm xi I climbed in, and the boys swung the propeller.
1928 Trans. Inst. Mining Engineers 76 110 A considerable amount of research-work has been carried out on screw propellors in wind-tunnels.
1953 C. A. Lindbergh Spirit of St. Louis i. i. 9 I..pull back my throttle until the propellor is just ticking over.
1968 R. Miller & D. Sawers Technical Devel. Mod. Aviation vi. 205 The advantage of the turboprop stems essentially from the greater efficiency of the propeller than the jet as a means of propulsion at low speeds.
1982 Giant Bk. Electronics Projects ix. 392 My concern is my newly hewn wind generator propeller.
1993 Equinox Oct. 54/2 My pilot feathered the propellers and swooped down over the river, leaving my stomach to catch up.
2. figurative and in extended use.
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the world > movement > impelling or driving > [noun] > propulsion > one who or that which
projicient1645
projector1674
propeller1815
1815 W. H. Ireland Scribbleomania 7 To ye, all Authors' known propellers, I tune my lays, renown'd Booksellers!
1863 E. Bulwer-Lytton Caxtoniana I. xx. 349 Every man has in his own temperament peculiar propellers to the movement of his thoughts.
1875 F. T. Buckland Log-bk. Fisherman 52 The Kangaroos did not use their tails as propellers.
1987 J. Hooker Master of Leaping Figures 54 Spring touches the river softly with thistledown, willow flowers, gauzy insects—tiny propellers that will not be airborne again.
2003 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 28 Oct. c6/2 AOL's once-soaring advertising revenue—once the main propeller of its growth—appeared to sputter.
3. A steamboat driven by a screw propeller (in contrast to a paddle wheel). Now historical.
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society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > mechanically propelled vessels > [noun] > propelled by screw propeller
screw boat1839
screw ship1839
screw steamer1839
screw steamship1839
screw vessel1839
propeller1843
screw1848
1843 Merchants' Mag. June 574 The building of the propeller Hercules is the commencement of a new era in lake navigation.
1860 Capt. Maury in Mercantile Marine Mag. 7 233 Two propellers..might be sent out.
1890 Decatur (Illinois) Daily Republican 12 July 2/4 The Tioga which was one of the largest and finest propelers on the lakes, is badly wrecked.
1961 Canad. Hist. Rev. June 133 The affair of the propeller Georgian, a vessel owned by a neutral British subject.
4. Angling. More fully propeller bait. An artificial bait with blades which cause it to rotate when drawn through the water.
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the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > means of attracting fish > [noun] > bait > spinning bait
angel1867
propellera1884
spinnera1884
whirl1888
toby1969
a1884 E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech. Suppl. 724/2 Propeller, a kind of trolling bait, having oblique wings which cause it to rotate in the water. Chapman's Reversible Propeller.
1970 McKean County Democrat (Smethport, Pa.) 11 June 4/1 Twitch the rod just enough to make the propellers swish.
1986 Daily Herald (Chicago) 27 Sept. iv. 7/4 Favorite artificial muskie baits are bucktails, spoons, floating propeller baits, [etc.].
1990 Sports Afield May 98/2 Stickbaits..resemble slim-minnow plugs and propeller baits but lack lips to make them dive or propellers to make them splash.
5. A self-propelled fire engine (in contrast to one drawn by horses). rare.
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the world > matter > properties of materials > temperature > coldness > extinguishing fire > [noun] > fire-fighting > a substance or apparatus for extinguishing > fire-engine > specific kinds of
manual1866
steamer1870
propeller1901
pumper1912
green goddess1973
1897 Sci. Amer. 13 Feb. 100/1 It was decided by the Boston Fire Department that a ‘double extra first size self-propeller’, as it is called, should be ordered, having steam for a motive power.]
1901 Sci. Amer. 17 Aug. 105/2 The value of the propellers as fire-quenching agencies has been most conclusively demonstrated... The streams..appear to have several times the effect of those from the..horse engines.
1905 Hartford (Connecticut) Courant 2 Feb. 1 The big propellers—the fire engines that furnish their own power.
Compounds
C1. General attributive and instrumental (in sense 1).
propeller blade n.
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1852 C. King Progress City of N.Y. 33 Stevens built a steamboat at Bordentown for the sole purpose of experimenting on the forms and curves of propeller blades.
1909 Times 27 Sept. 8/2 Breakage of the propeller blade is a serious danger in every form of aerial vessel.
2003 D. Elliott Energy, Society & Environm. ii. vii. 134 The energy collected from a wind turbine is proportional to the area in the circle swept by the propeller blade.
propeller-driven adj.
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1909 Times 5 May 18/4 The wire wheel secures a similar advantage for the propeller-driven machine.
1996 T. Clancy Executive Orders xli. 560 This mini-aircraft was an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, or UAV, a blue-gray-colored, propeller-driven spy.
propeller efficiency n.
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1902 Times 25 Dec. 4/5 Sir John Durston can see his way to higher revolutions with equal, or perhaps increased, propeller efficiency.
1992 Technol. & Culture 33 258 The turbine still operated at too high a speed for optimum propeller efficiency.
propeller flutter n.
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1916 H. Barber Aeroplane Speaks 125 Propeller ‘flutter’or vibration, may be due to faulty pitch angle, balance, camber, surface area, or to bad mounting.
1993 Flight Internat. (Nexis) 21 Apr. Airflow is quite moderate in typical camera positions, without the vibration which limits the helicopter's acceptance by photographers, and without propeller flutter.
propeller screw n.
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1844 Times 21 Oct. 5/7 The Admiralty appears to have been guided in their selection of a permanent propeller screw for the Rattler.
a1877 E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech. II. 1809/1 The pitch of a propeller-screw is the length, measured along the axis, of a complete turn.
1991 Frederick (Maryland) Post 19 Feb. a4/4 That blast damaged one of the Princeton's propeller screws.
propeller shafting n.
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1859 Times 6 June 10/4 The whole length of the line of propeller shafting is 124 feet.
1898 Daily N. 9 Mar. 4/5 The Sturgeon..was disabled last week by an accident to her propeller shafting.
1996 Marine Engineers Rev. June 50/3 Auxiliary machinery installed in merchant ships from pumps and pumping systems to propeller shafting and sterntubes.
propeller slip n.
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1909 Westm. Gaz. 4 Mar. 4/2 According to some authorities, more than 50 per cent. of the engine-power is lost in what is known as propeller-slip.
2005 Trailer Boats (Nexis) 1 Nov. 69 The meter is reading the speed of the boat through the water, plus the propeller slip.
propeller steamship n.
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1845 Times 8 Feb. 8/5 She will try her rate of speed..with the Admiralty yacht and the Rattler screw propeller steam-ship.]
1850 Tioga (Wellsboro, Pa.) Eagle 15 May 2/3 The new propeller steamship, City of Glasgow, arrived here on Saturday.
2001 B. R. Hoch Lincoln Trail in Pennsylvania iii. 47 The Globe was a propeller steamship of average displacement.
propeller thrust n.
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1909 Science Feb. 281/2 The latest dirigible balloons..employing the propeller thrust and rudder surfaces to control the altitude.
1998 Canal Boat & Inland Waterways Aug. 70/2 (advt.) They smooth transmission backlash, absorb propeller thrust, and compensate for both angular and radial misalignment.
propeller wash n.
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1911 Stevens Point (Wisconsin) Daily Jrnl. 4 Apr. The launch..proceeded to run in front of him [sc. a tuna], and, by giving him the propeller wash, would turn him back into the bay.
1986 New Yorker 26 May 69/1 Leirer felt two violent judders from the propeller wash of the other aircraft's right engines.
C2. † propeller mower n. Obsolete rare a type of mower which is driven or pushed from behind.
propeller engine n. Mechanics an engine that drives a propeller.
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1852 Daily Commerc. Reg. (Sandusky, Ohio) 28 Aug. Capt. Ericsson is the inventor of the Screw Propeller Engine, now so universally in use.]
1852 Sci. Amer. 4 Dec. 96/4 Loper & Nystrom's patented propeller engine is also illustrated.
1989 R. Dawkins Selfish Gene (new ed.) (BNC) Maybe you can beat a sword into a ploughshare, but try ‘beating’ a propeller engine into a jet engine! You can't do it.
propeller fan n. a fan incorporating a device resembling a screw propeller, which rotates to produce a flow of air parallel to the axis of rotation; esp. one in which the propeller is not enclosed, or else is enclosed in a very short casing that does not restrict the air flow.
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the world > matter > gas > air > fresh air > [noun] > supplying fresh air or ventilation > fan > rotating
vane1810
fan1835
propeller fan1850
1850 Sci. Amer. 12 Oct. 28/1 Attached to this car there are two propeller fans, one on each side.
1897 Inst. Mech. Engineers: Proc. 469 The propeller fan was for volume of air without compression, the centrifugal for volume with compression.
1991 A. Macneill Alistair MacLean's Time of Assassins i. 7 The two large propeller fans still rotated slowly above the room.
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a1877 E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech. II. 1810/2 One other mode of draft is to be noticed, and that is the propeller, in which the cutting apparatus is ahead of the horses, which push the implement before them.]
1890 Cent. Dict. Propeller-mower, same as front-cut mower.
propeller pump n. a pump incorporating a rotating device which resembles a screw propeller.
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1871 Manufacturer & Builder Nov. 255/1 The compound propeller pump is situated close by, and attracts much attention by its novelty and ingenuity of construction.
1986 C. Culpin Farm Machinery (ed. 11) x. 169/1 A propeller pump is a low-lift type which is suitable for tractor operation on work such as flood irrigation.
propeller shaft n. Mechanics a shaft transmitting power from an engine to a propeller or to the driven wheels of a motor vehicle; cf. propshaft n. at prop n.9 Compounds 2.
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society > occupation and work > equipment > machine > parts of machines > shaft > [noun] > others
axle-tree1659
axle-shaft1837
propeller shaft1839
crank-shaft1854
sub-shaft1859
driveshaft1860
half-time shaft1861
cardan joint1868
line shafting1872
thrusting-shaft1906
1839 Civil Engineer & Architect's Jrnl. 2 442/2 The propeller consists now of two half-turns of a thread..placed diametrically opposite to each other on the propeller-shaft.
1913 A. E. Berriman Aviation iii. 24 In monoplanes the propeller-shaft is ordinarily on a level with the middle of the body.
1990 W. A. Livesey GCSE Motor Vehicle Stud. x. 86/1 The function of the propeller-shaft is to transmit the drive from the rear of the gearbox to the rear axle, so propelling the car.
propeller turbine n. Engineering a turbine comprising a propeller inside a cylindrical casing; (Aeronautics) a turboprop or turbojet.
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society > travel > air or space travel > a means of conveyance through the air > aeroplane > parts of aircraft > means of propulsion > [adjective] > types of jet engine
ramjet1942
pure-jet1944
propeller turbine1945
turbojet1945
turbopropeller1947
fan-lift1961
reheated1961
1945 Jrnl. Royal Aeronaut. Soc. 49 196/2 Perhaps the large blower of the jet or propeller turbine unit may encourage the study of boundary layer control possibilities of higher maximum lift coefficients.
1968 R. Miller & D. Sawers Technical Devel. Mod. Aviation vi. 183 The propeller-turbine engine was of more immediate interest to the airlines than the jet, and by 1950 the idea of fitting it to existing airplanes like the DC-6 and Constellation was becoming widely accepted in the United States.
1979 Technol. & Culture 20 66 Only three types of hydraulic turbines are still made in significant numbers: the Francis, Pelton, and Kaplan types... The Kaplan or propeller turbine is named after an Austrian engineer.
1998 Guardian 15 July i. 22/7 Wing-mounted twin propeller turbines..pushed compressed air through the hollow rotor blades to tiny pressure jets at the rotor tips.
propeller well n. a vertical cavity at the stern of a ship into which the propeller can be hoisted when not in use; (also) a recess in which a propeller is mounted.
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1856 Sci. Amer. 25 Oct. 51/2 A large timber floating into the propeller well.
1912 Washington Post 7 Apr. 2/3 A young Irish shipwright boarded up the propeller well while the vessel was rolling in heavy seas.
2002 Akron (Ohio) Beacon Jrnl. (Nexis) 8 Jan. d1 Ducking into the cockpit of the plane, Olson retrieved a..checklist of..items, from looking for bird nests in the propeller well to kicking the tires on the landing gear.
2006 L. Arnold Fastest Ship (ed. 2) 160 Beyond this bulkhead..is the rudder collar and propeller well.
propeller wheel n. a screw propeller (see sense 1b).
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1847 Times 17 Nov. 6/2 The diameter of the submerged propeller wheels of the Albion is only 24 inches.
1889 G. M. Hopkins Exper. Sci. xii. 250 The sections of the wheel are cut from a circular piece of mica, and cemented in place on the paper tube after the fashion of a propeller wheel.
1992 Toronto Star (Nexis) 10 Jan. a2 He dropped the propeller wheel into the water, and touched the spring and away the boat sped.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2007; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1780