nodding donkey

noun

1. informal.
   (in the oil industry) a type of reciprocating pump used to extract oil from an inland well

Word History and Origins

Origin of nodding donkey¹

C20: so called from its shape and movement

Example Sentences

Dongying, a city of 2.1 million known for acrid-smelling air and a cluttered landscape of “nodding donkey” oil wells, is home to nearly 30 refineries and dozens of small chemical plants.

From Reuters

Dongying, a city of 2.1 million known for acrid-smelling air and a cluttered landscape of “nodding donkey” oil wells, is home to nearly 30 refineries and dozens of small chemical plants.

From Reuters

Yet unlike many of the large fracking companies which are large organizations with the associated bureaucracy and overhead, strippers are small firms that often have no choice, but to keep their nodding donkey pumps running.

From Time

Thousands of "nodding donkey" oil pumps dot the flat, blistering hot landscape.

From BBC

In Uptown today, the Nodding Donkey bar thumps where a black barbershop once stood.

From Washington Times