SINCE 1828

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

check valve

noun

Definition of check valve

: a valve that permits flow in one direction only

First Known Use of check valve

circa 1877

Learn More about check valve

See words that rhyme with check valve

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up check valve? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show

WORD OF THE DAY

akimbo

play

set in a bent position

Words at Play

alt-5978cb55e8ba5

The Grammatical History of 'Awaken'/'Awoken'/'Awakened'

Or you can just go back to bed.

alt-59775cb5d7779

Words We're Watching: 'Aquafaba'

Don't dump out the bean water just yet...

Words About Word Play

Don't just eat your words—play with them!

alt-596f95fe451e7

'Drought' & 'Drouth' Take Us Back In Time

A variant spelling with a long history

Ask the Editors

video-title-words-of-the-year-1066

Words of the Year: 1066

Or, Why Pig Meat is Called 'Pork' and Cow Meat is Called 'Beef'

How Often Is 'Biweekly'?

Don't get us started on 'bimonthly'

video-irregardless-grammar-peeve-blend-of-the-synonyms-irrespective-and-regardless

Irregardless

It is in fact a real word (but that doesn't mean you should use it).

video-moose-goose-weird-plurals

Weird Plurals

One goose, two geese. One moose, two... moose. What's up with that?

Word Games

The Emoji Quiz

Think you’re an emoji 👓 expert? Let’s see 🤔

Take the quiz

A Game of Thrones Word Quiz

In the Game of Thrones quiz, you learn some new vocabulary. (It’s quite safe, really. You will not die.)

Take the quiz

True or False?

Test your knowledge - and maybe learn something along the way.

Take the quiz

Syn City

Build a city of skyscrapers—one synonym at a time.

Play the game