ratchet
To increment or decrementTo increment or decrement; especially, to offer controlled motion that can increment while resisting decrement, or vice versa.
Recorded US: Sylvanmoon, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
» Handcuffs are none other than a ratchet mechanism.
fullyfledged_pigeon · Tatoeba · CC BY 2.0 FRMeaning
2 senses(intransitive)To increment or decrement; especially, to offer controlled motion that can increment while resisting decrement, or vice versa.
This holddown ratchets, which allows the person loading the trailer to cinch down the straps.
(transitive)To cause (something) to become incremented or decremented.
Get this holddown into position, but don't start ratcheting it yet. When I say go, you start ratcheting it, OK?
It's time to ratchet up the intensity level here.
- move by degrees in one direction only
Examples
6 sentencesHandcuffs are none other than a ratchet mechanism.
Yanni turned the ratchet to loosen the bolt.
Yanni used a small ratchet to tighten the bolt.
Ziri needs a ratchet and a screwdriver to replace his car battery.
We need to ratchet up the pressure. We can't let it simply subside.
Translations
2 languagesOrigin
From French rochet (“bobbin, spindle, ratchet”), from Italian rocchetto (“spool, ratchet”)From French rochet (“bobbin, spindle, ratchet”), from Italian rocchetto (“spool, ratchet”).
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
ratchets, ratcheting, ratcheted, ratchetedSynonyms
2 synonyms- move by degrees in one direction only:rachet upratchet down
Word family
4 related wordsLessons for this word
3 lessons- A1Present simple — Because it is a verb
- A1Past simple, regular verbs — Because of its past form
- A2Present perfect: introduction — Because of its past participle
See also
neighbours in the dictionaryDictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.