English

Alternative forms

• waterwheel
• water-wheel

Noun

water wheel ‎(plural water wheels)

1. A wheel, propelled by running or falling water, used to power machinery.
   • 2013 July-August, Lee S. Langston, “The Adaptable Gas Turbine”, in American Scientist:

     Turbines have been around for a long time—windmills and water wheels are early examples. The name comes from the Latin turbo, meaning vortex, and thus the defining property of a turbine is that a fluid or gas turns the blades of a rotor, which is attached to a shaft that can perform useful work.

2. A wheel with buckets used to raise water.

Synonyms

• (wheel with buckets): noria

Translations

See also

• turbine