pulley
n.n. a wheel with a groove in the middle that holds a rope or belt. You use it to change the direction of a force or to make lifting heavy things easier.
n. a wheel with a groove for a rope or belt, used to change the direction of a force or to provide mechanical advantage. Often used in systems to reduce the effort required to lift a load.
The worker used a pulley to lift the heavy box.
The construction crew installed a series of pulleys to help move the heavy steel beams into place.
By using a compound pulley system, the engineers were able to distribute the weight of the massive turbine across several ropes, significantly reducing the strain on the lifting equipment.
From Middle English puly, poley, from Old French poulie, polie (“a pulley, windlass”), from Medieval Latin polidia, plural mistaken for the feminine of neuter polidium, from Ancient Greek πολίδιον (polídion, “little pivot”), diminutive of πόλος (pólos, “pivot, hinge, axis”), from Proto-Indo-European *kʷel- (“to turn”). Associated with pull (verb) by folk etymology.