Definition of TURBINE

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The oldest and simplest form of turbine is the waterwheel, which is made to rotate by water falling across its blades and into buckets suspended from them. Hero of Alexandria invented the first steam-driven turbine in the 1st century A.D., but a commercially practical steam turbine wasn't developed until 1884; steam turbines are now the main elements of electric power stations. Jet engines are gas turbines. A turbojet engine uses a turbine to compress the incoming air that feeds the engine before being ejected to push the plane forward; a turboprop engine uses its exhaust to drive a turbine that spins a propeller. A wind turbine generates electricity by being turned by the wind; the largest now have vanes with a turning diameter of over 400 feet.

Examples of turbine in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The problem with the propulsion system isn’t related to the nuclear reactors but rather the turbines driven by the steam produced by the reactors. — Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, "The Navy’s Newest Aircraft Carrier Is Delayed, Yet Again," 28 Mar. 2019 The turbines were originally rated to produce 500 kilowatts (kW) apiece. — Megan Geuss, Ars Technica, "Offshore, Act Two: New owner repowers 20-year-old wind farm off Swedish coast," 30 Dec. 2018 Meanwhile, its owners are racing to build a turbine. — David Roberts, Vox, "The Green New Deal, explained," 21 Dec. 2018 The set also features adjustable and motorized turbine blades and a movable nacelle with aircraft warning lights. — Avery Thompson, Popular Mechanics, "Put Renewable Energy On Your Desk With a Lego Wind Turbine," 26 Sep. 2018 The latest problem in Pratt’s geared turbofan — a fault in its knife-edge seal that led to in-flight shutdowns — is just the most recent in a series of afflictions for the turbine. — Benjamin Katz, The Seattle Times, "Airbus will miss its A320neo delivery goal after engine problems," 3 July 2018 Each tower would be outfitted with a turbine rated at 8 megawatts or more, said Michal Michalski, a member of Polenergia’s management board. — James M Gomez, Bloomberg.com, "Even Europe’s Coal Addict Wants to Get Clean," 27 Apr. 2018 Then the steam from the boiling fluid drives a turbine, which generates electrical power. — David Roberts, Vox, "The Green New Deal, explained," 21 Dec. 2018 When the solar panels are producing enough energy, Longyangxia's hydroelectric plant cuts back the amount of water that goes through the turbines, which results in more water behind the dam for operation during late nights and early mornings. — Megan Geuss, Ars Technica, "Floating solar is more than panels on a platform—it’s hydroelectric’s symbiont," 3 Nov. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'turbine.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.