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Synonyms

lathe

American  
[leyth] / leɪð /

noun

  1. a machine for use in working wood, metal, etc., that holds the material and rotates it about a horizontal axis against a tool that shapes it.

verb (used with object)

lathed, lathing

  1. to cut, shape, or otherwise treat on a lathe.

lathe 1 British  
/ leɪð /

noun

  1. a machine for shaping, boring, facing, or cutting a screw thread in metal, wood, etc, in which the workpiece is turned about a horizontal axis against a fixed tool

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. (tr) to shape, bore, or cut a screw thread in or on (a workpiece) on a lathe

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
lathe 2 British  
/ leɪð /

noun

  1. history any of the former administrative divisions of Kent

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of lathe

1300–50; Middle English: frame, stand, lathe; compare Old Norse hlath stack ( lade ), Danish -lad in væverlad weaver's batten, savelad saw bench

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The military released what it said was drone footage from inside the tunnel, which showed several rooms, a bathroom, rocket casings and a lathe.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 17, 2025

To do the work, the team used a large lathe to spin a detached brake rotor and caliper.

From Science Daily • Mar. 12, 2024

In an enclosed box, a computer-controlled lathe machines a metal rod, turning and shaping an airplane cockpit doorknob.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 17, 2023

Standing on a blanket of sawdust in the Los Angeles Fashion District woodshop she shares with two other woodworkers, Julie Jackson puts on a protective face shield and turns on her lathe.

From Los Angeles Times • May 2, 2023

Mr. Bykovski, in a baggy one-piece coverall, was working at a lathe.

From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.