Slide rule

Slide rule
Slide Slide, n. [AS. sl[=i]de.] 1. The act of sliding; as, a slide on the ice. [1913 Webster]

2. Smooth, even passage or progress. [1913 Webster]

A better slide into their business. --Bacon. [1913 Webster]

3. That on which anything moves by sliding. Specifically: (a) An inclined plane on which heavy bodies slide by the force of gravity, esp. one constructed on a mountain side for conveying logs by sliding them down. (b) A surface of ice or snow on which children slide for amusement. [1913 Webster]

4. That which operates by sliding. Specifically: (a) A cover which opens or closes an aperture by sliding over it. (b) (Mach.) A moving piece which is guided by a part or parts along which it slides. (c) A clasp or brooch for a belt, or the like. [1913 Webster]

5. A plate or slip of glass on which is a picture or delineation to be exhibited by means of a magic lantern, stereopticon, or the like; a plate on which is an object to be examined with a microscope. [1913 Webster]

6. The descent of a mass of earth, rock, or snow down a hill or mountain side; as, a land slide, or a snow slide; also, the track of bare rock left by a land slide. [1913 Webster]

7. (Geol.) A small dislocation in beds of rock along a line of fissure. --Dana. [1913 Webster]

8. (Mus.) (a) A grace consisting of two or more small notes moving by conjoint degrees, and leading to a principal note either above or below. (b) An apparatus in the trumpet and trombone by which the sounding tube is lengthened and shortened so as to produce the tones between the fundamental and its harmonics. [1913 Webster]

9. (Phonetics) A sound which, by a gradual change in the position of the vocal organs, passes imperceptibly into another sound. [1913 Webster]

10. (Steam Engine) (a) Same as {Guide bar}, under {Guide}. (b) A slide valve. [1913 Webster]

{Slide box} (Steam Engine), a steam chest. See under {Steam}.

{Slide lathe}, an engine lathe. See under {Lathe}.

{Slide rail}, a transfer table. See under {Transfer}.

{Slide rest} (Turning lathes), a contrivance for holding, moving, and guiding, the cutting tool, made to slide on ways or guides by screws or otherwise, and having compound motion.

{Slide rule}, a mathematical instrument consisting of two parts, one of which slides upon the other, for the mechanical performance of addition and subtraction, and, by means of logarithmic scales, of multiplication and division.

{Slide valve}. (a) Any valve which opens and closes a passageway by sliding over a port. (b) A particular kind of sliding valve, often used in steam engines for admitting steam to the piston and releasing it, alternately, having a cuplike cavity in its face, through which the exhaust steam passes. It is situated in the steam chest, and moved by the valve gear. It is sometimes called a {D valve}, -- a name which is also applied to a semicylindrical pipe used as a sliding valve. [1913 Webster] In the illustration, a is the cylinder of a steam engine, in which plays the piston p; b the steam chest, receiving its supply from the pipe i, and containing the slide valve s, which is shown as admitting steam to one end of the cylinder through the port e, and opening communication between the exhaust passage f and the port c, for the release of steam from the opposite end of the cylinder. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • slide-rule — also slide rule, calculating tool, 1838, from SLIDE (Cf. slide) (v.) + RULE (Cf. rule) (n.). So called for its method of operation …   Etymology dictionary

  • Slide rule — n. a thin, flat calculating device consisting of a fixed outer piece and a movable middle piece. Both pieces are graduated in such a way (as, by a logarithmic scale) that multiplication, division, and other mathematical functions of an input var …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • slide rule — slide rules N COUNT A slide rule is an instrument that you use for calculating numbers. It looks like a ruler and has a middle part that slides backwards and forwards …   English dictionary

  • slide rule — n an old fashioned instrument used for calculating numbers, that looks like a ruler and has a middle part that slides across …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • slide rule — slide ,rule noun count a simple piece of equipment like a RULER with a piece in the middle that slides along, used for calculating …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • slide rule — slide′ rule n. math. a mechanical calculator consisting of a ruler with a sliding section, both bearing logarithmic scales • Etymology: 1875–80 …   From formal English to slang

  • slide rule — ► NOUN ▪ a ruler with a sliding central strip, marked with logarithmic scales and used for making rapid calculations …   English terms dictionary

  • slide rule — n. a mechanical mathematical device consisting of a ruler with a central sliding piece, both parts being marked with various number scales: used to find square roots, logarithms, quotients, etc. rapidly …   English World dictionary

  • Slide rule — For other uses, see Slide rule (disambiguation). A typical ten inch student slide rule (Pickett N902 T simplex trig). The slide rule, also known colloquially as a slipstick,[1] is a mechanical analog computer. The slide rule is used primarily for …   Wikipedia

  • slide rule — a device for performing mathematical calculations, consisting essentially of a ruler having a sliding piece moving along it, both marked with graduated, usually logarithmic, scales: now largely replaced by the electronic calculator. [1655 65 for… …   Universalium

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