Ratch

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A toothed wheel or bar engaged by a pawl so it turns in only one direction ; to advance or adjust something gradually in small one-way increments
2. A notched wheel held by a catch that permits movement only one way ; to tighten or shift a mechanism step by step in a single direction
3. A cogged wheel paired with a pawl that lets motion occur in one direction alone ; to raise or lower something by repeated small, one-way movements

Etymology: Ratch is a clipped form of ratchet, and it names the same thing: a wheel with angled teeth, usually paired with a pawl that catches the teeth so the wheel turns in one direction only. Most of the history belongs to ratchet, which English took from French. The French source, "rochet", is thought to be connected to older words for a spindle or distaff, though the exact route is uncertain. Shortening ratchet to ratch is an ordinary English habit, in which a longer technical name is trimmed in everyday speech until a single syllable remains. Both forms are used for the mechanism, with ratchet the fuller and more common term.

Synonyms: ratchet