cylinder
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
a shape with two circular ends and straight sides, like a pipe or a soup can.
a solid geometric figure with two parallel circular bases and a curved surface connecting them.
Simple“The architect designed the building as a tall glass cylinder.”
In context“The student calculated the volume of the cylinder by multiplying the area of its circular base by its height.”
- 02 B2 Upper Intermediate
the tube-shaped part of an engine where a piston moves to create power.
the central working part of a reciprocating engine or pump, being the space in which a piston travels.
Simple“The car has a powerful six-cylinder engine.”
In context“A crack in the third cylinder caused the engine to lose compression and stall during the test drive.”
Synonyms - 03 B2 Upper Intermediate
a strong metal container used for holding gas under pressure.
a pressurized metal container, typically cylindrical with rounded ends, used for storing and transporting gases.
Simple“We need to buy a new gas cylinder for the outdoor grill.”
In context“The divers checked their oxygen cylinders one last time before descending into the cave system.”
- 04 C2 Proficiency
a way of grouping data on a computer's hard drive.
a unit of data on a hard disk drive consisting of the set of all tracks that are at the same distance from the centre of the platters.
Simple“The old computer manual explained how data was organized by cylinder and track.”
In context“Modern operating systems abstract the physical cylinder-head-sector geometry of the drive to simplify data management.”
UsageUsually used when discussing the physical geometry of older hard disk drives.
“Customers stand with empty cooking-gas cylinders in Srinagar, India, waiting to be able to refill them.”
From Middle French chilindre, cylindre, from Latin cylindrus, from Ancient Greek κύλινδρος (kúlindros), from κυλίνδω (kulíndō) "I roll or wallow" (intransitive). Doublet of calander and calender.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.