skirt finger
An individual, replaceable, flexible tube or flap attached to the bottom edge of the main inflatable skirt of a hovercraft or air cushion vehicle.
Entries starting with S
965 entries.
skirting board
nounCarpentry
A panel, normally made of wood, between the floor and the interior wall of a structure, or placed in a position that is subject to repeated knocks.
skiving
nounMetalworking
A type of machining that skives metal, with various applications including gear cutting.
skpo
verbManufacturing
Initialism of slip one, knit one, and pass slipstitch over.
skyhook
A proposed momentum-exchange tether for launching payloads into low Earth orbit by hooking them to the end of a cable that reaches down from an orbiting station into the upper atmosphere.
sl st
Abbreviation of slip stitch.
SLA
nounAutomotive
Initialism of short long arms suspension.
slab
nounConstruction
A poured-concrete foundation for a building.
slab hut
nounConstruction
A kind of dwelling or shed made from slabs of split or sawn timber.
slab line
A central conductor surrounded by two planar ground slabs.
slab on grade
nounConstruction
A horizontal placement of concrete directly over a prepared earth substrate.
slack
nounRail equipment
A temporary speed restriction where track maintenance or engineering work is being carried out at a particular place.
slack fill
nounManufacturing
The inadequate filling of a package so that it contains too little of the product.
slackline
A length of cable, rope, or webbing that hangs loosely from its points of suspension.
slaggability
nounMetalworking
The quality or degree of being slaggable.
slaggable
adjectiveMetallurgy
Able to be turned into slag.
slagger
nounMetallurgy
One who works with slag.
slaglessness
nounMetallurgy
The quality of being free from slag.
slam
To move a customer from one service provider to another without their consent.
slant
A run: a heading driven diagonally between the dip and strike of a coal seam.
slap mark
An identifying tattoo applied to livestock by means of a tool (slap marker).
slap marker
A tool for applying slap marks to livestock, consisting of a pattern of pins attached to a long handle.
slash pile
nounConstruction
Accumulated debris from cutting brush or trimming trees.
slat
A control surface that extends forwards and downwards from the leading edge of a wing, leaving a gap between it and the leading edge, in order to modify the airflow around the wing so as to allow flight at a higher angle of attack without stalling, lowering the aircraft's stall speed.
SLD
Initialism of semiconductor laser diode.
sleave
verbManufacturing
To separate, as threads; to divide, as a collection of threads.
sledge brake
nounRail equipment
An early type of track brake where a block or shoe was pressed against a rail.
sleep
To spin on its axis with no other perceptible motion.
sleep shorts
A type of lightweight shorts designed for sleeping or lounging.
sleeper
nounCarpentry
A structural beam in a floor running perpendicular to both the joists beneath and floorboards above.
sleeping car
nounRail equipment
A railroad car with sleeping facilities for passengers travelling overnight.
sleeping table
A stationary inclined platform on which pulverized ore is washed.
sleeve
A double tube of copper into which the ends of bare wires are pushed so that when the tube is twisted an electrical connection is made. The joint thus made is called a McIntire joint.
sleeved
adjectiveConstruction
Made with or having sleeves.
sleeveless
adjectiveTextile production
Of a garment, having no sleeves.
slew
verbRail equipment
To move something (usually a railway line) sideways.
sley
nounManufacturing
The number of warp ends per inch in the cloth.
slice
A removable sliding bottom to a galley.
slick
A camera-ready image to be used by a printer. The "slick" is photographed to produce a negative image which is then used to burn a positive offset plate or other printing device.
slicker
nounMetalworking
A curved tool for smoothing the surfaces of a mould after the withdrawal of the pattern.
sling
A band of rope or iron for securing a yard to a mast.
slingload
A load suspended from an aircraft, usually a helicopter, and carried to a new location.
slingshot
The act of passing cars queuing in the left-hand lane and using the right-hand lane to go around a roundabout, exiting at the desired junction having avoided the queue.
slingshot effect
The use of the relative movement and gravity of a planet or other celestial body to alter the path and speed of a spacecraft.
slip
The difference between the actual and synchronous speeds of an induction motor.
slip coach
nounRail equipment
A coach at the end of a long-distance train which carries passengers for an intermediate destination and is decoupled or "slipped" and left behind. (In bygone times the decoupling was done on the move; the rest of the train did not stop.)
slip lane
A short one-way lane allowing traffic to turn onto the cross street at an intersection without entering the intersection.
slip sheet
A sheet inserted between freshly printed pages to prevent them from sticking together.
slipstitch
nounManufacturing
a kind of stitch that is passed from the left needle to the right needle without being knitted
sloam
A layer of earth between coal seams.
slocking stone
A rich piece of ore displayed in order to tempt people to embark in a mining enterprise.
sloop
A single-masted sailboat with only one headsail.
sloper
nounManufacturing
A custom-fitted basic pattern from which patterns for many different styles can be created.
slopover
Fire that spreads beyond the firebreak or fireline.
slot
A channel opening in the stator or rotor of a rotating machine for ventilation and insertion of windings.
slotter
nounManufacturing
Someone or something that slots (that is, makes slots).
slow light
The propagation of an optical pulse or other modulation of an optical carrier at a very low group velocity.
slow speed control
An electronic device fitted to locomotives which enables them to operate at a very slow speed when their train is loaded or unloaded on the move.
slow street
A street on which the traffic has been slowed down, often limited to 30 km/h or less, using traffic signs or physical barriers like traffic islands, speed bumps, or plantings.
SLS
Initialism of Space Launch System.