rack and pinion

¹

noun

, Machinery, Automotive.

1. rack15a

rack-and-pinion

²

[ rak-uhn-pin-yuhn ]

adjective

1. of or relating to a mechanism in which a rack engages a pinion:

   rack-and-pinion steering.

rack-and-pinion

noun

1. a device for converting rotary into linear motion and vice versa, in which a gearwheel (the pinion) engages with a flat toothed bar (the rack)

adjective

1. (of a type of steering gear in motor vehicles) having a track rod with a rack along part of its length that engages with a pinion attached to the steering column

Word History and Origins

Origin of rack and pinion¹

First recorded in 1900–05

Example Sentences

A cheap instrument has an open face and plain frame, with sliding vernier instead of rack-and-pinion motion.

From Project Gutenberg

No odour, no teeth-disturbing grind of rack-and-pinion, no trumpeting, with that machine!

From Project Gutenberg

A rack-and-pinion movement for elevating or lowering the sliding pillar would be useful.

From Project Gutenberg