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Glite Dictionary
brake drum

brake drum

1 4.5
A hollow round metal part on a wheel that brake shoes push against to stop the vehicle
  • noun
  • /breɪk drʌm/
  • Specialized
translation icon : tambor de freno
  • The mechanic inspected the rear brake drum to ensure it was functioning properly.

Examples

  • Each wheel has a brake drum where the shoes press against to stop the vehicle.

  • Maybe even the brake drums.

    Jack Ensch: Hanoi Hilton POW (2016)

  • - Might salvage one brake drum.

    The Last American Hero (1973)

  • Both: Brake drum.

    Summer Stock (1950)

  • This powerful partnership is the structure of its way to becoming Phoenix Mecano Europe's number one manufacturer of brake drums.

    Blog text (14)

  • The car's performance improved after replacing the worn-out brake drum with a new one.

Synonyms

drum
vsbrake drum
  • Specialized
14 7.1

A hollow metal part on a wheel that helps a vehicle stop

focuses on the inner surface contacted by shoes that slow the wheel

Surface Forms

brake drum singular
brake drums plural

Morphology

brake + drum

The compound meaning is directly compositional: a 'drum' that is part of a vehicle's 'brake' system, so knowing 'brake' (device to stop motion) and 'drum' (hollow cylinder) allows a learner to infer the referent. This noun-noun formation follows common, cross-linguistic compounding patterns, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents would readily understand 'brake drum'.

Etymology

Brake drum comes from a literal image: a round metal drum on the wheel that the brake presses on. Because the brake presses on this drum to 'slow' or 'stop' the wheel, brake drum now means the wheel part that does that job.