escapement

[ ih-skeyp-muhnt ]

noun

1. Horology. the portion of a watch or clock that measures beats and controls the speed of the going train. Compare anchor escapement, deadbeat ( def 4 ), lever escapement.
2. a mechanism for regulating the motion of a typewriter carriage, consisting of pawls and a toothed wheel or rack.
3. a mechanism in a piano that causes a hammer to fall back into rest position immediately after striking a string.
4. an act of escaping.
5. Archaic. a way of escape; outlet.

escapement

/ ɪˈskeɪpmənt /

noun

1. horology a mechanism consisting of an escape wheel and anchor, used in timepieces to provide periodic impulses to the pendulum or balance
2. any similar mechanism that regulates movement, usually consisting of toothed wheels engaged by rocking levers
3. (in a piano) the mechanism that allows the hammer to clear the string after striking, so that the string can vibrate
4. an overflow channel
5. rare.
   an act or means of escaping

Word History and Origins

Origin of escapement¹

1730–40; escape + -ment (calque of French échappement

Example Sentences

But it contained neither the tourbillon cage that surrounds the watch’s oscillating escapement nor the 30 percent additional power required to fuel it.

From New York Times

The natural coho stock in the Queets is currently under a rebuilding plan through the Pacific Fisheries Management Council after being designated “overfished” in 2018 when spawning escapement levels dropped below the minimum threshold.

From Seattle Times

In the Queets River, only in one of the last eight years have the runs achieved the escapement goal, or the number of salmon that “escape” harvest and return to the river or hatchery to spawn and sustain the population.

From Seattle Times

Mere weeks after the escapement, Cooke’s salmon were found as far south as Tacoma and as far north as Vancouver Island.

From Seattle Times

Lavie Tidhar’s most recent novels are “The Escapement” and “The Hood.”

From Washington Post