slide rule
noun
: a manual device used for calculation that consists in its simple form of a ruler and a movable middle piece which are graduated with similar logarithmic scales
Examples of slide rule in a Sentence
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The company previously brought us doo-dads such as an intricate circular slide rule, a clever measuring disc, and a folding-blade knife that can be opened with the same hand that's holding it.
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Ben Coxworth, New Atlas, 4 Mar. 2025
While Charles Babbage had proposed his theoretical Analytical Engine in 1837—a mechanical computer using gears and levers that was never built in his lifetime—the most advanced calculating devices of 1863 were little more than mechanical calculators and slide rules.
—Ars Technica, 11 Jan. 2025
Indeed, the term itself appears to have been coined just after World War II, at which point shipbuilders were already doing it at enormous scale to lengthen warships, in some of the most complex engineering work ever attempted in the slide rule era.
—New Atlas, 7 Sep. 2024
There’s no need to turn back the clock to the days of typewriters and slide rules, but our universities could benefit from prioritizing good old-fashioned interaction.
—Aden Barton, Washington Post, 9 July 2024
See All Example Sentences for slide rule
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Ben Coxworth, New Atlas, 4 Mar. 2025
While Charles Babbage had proposed his theoretical Analytical Engine in 1837—a mechanical computer using gears and levers that was never built in his lifetime—the most advanced calculating devices of 1863 were little more than mechanical calculators and slide rules.
—Ars Technica, 11 Jan. 2025
Indeed, the term itself appears to have been coined just after World War II, at which point shipbuilders were already doing it at enormous scale to lengthen warships, in some of the most complex engineering work ever attempted in the slide rule era.
—New Atlas, 7 Sep. 2024
There’s no need to turn back the clock to the days of typewriters and slide rules, but our universities could benefit from prioritizing good old-fashioned interaction.
—Aden Barton, Washington Post, 9 July 2024
See All Example Sentences for slide rule
Cite this Entry
“Slide rule.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/slide%20rule. Accessed 14 Jul. 2025.
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