shock absorber
3
3.9
- noun
- /ʃɑk əbˈzɔrbər/
- Specialized
:
amortiguador
- The mechanic recommended replacing the shock absorbers to ensure a smoother ride.
- spring shock absorber
Still, while tuned mass dampers and shock absorbers are great, they're not perfect.
- Still, while tuned mass dampers and shock absorbers are great, they're not perfect.
- There's one shock absorber, there's a bracket, there's another shock absorber, and the AP screws are my screws.
- In fact, beetle rubber is used rolled over as a shock absorber.
- Still, well tuned mass stampers and shock absorbers are great.
Examples
-
Lift kits raised the truck bodies, and larger shock absorbers were installed.
Academic text (2013) -
The wheels are out of balance and the shock absorbers must be replaced.
-
Say, does your car need a new muffler or new shock absorbers?
-
If it bounces up and down a couple to three times, your shock absorbers are bad.
Blog text (20) -
The car rocked on its shock absorbers.
Fiction book (1991) -
This may come as a nasty surprise to you, but shock absorbers have been standard equipment on motorized vehicles for 30 years.
-
Does the device have special features to enhance comfort (e.g., a special seating system or shock absorbers in the case of a wheelchair)?
Academic text (1990) -
The seat straightens up, the seat belts tighten, the shock absorbers get tense and it starts beeping at me.
-
The Arachnid advanced with a prancing motion, intelligent shock absorbers keeping the cabin level and damping out all but forward motion.
Fiction book (1999) -
Within a prosthetic limb, potential energy exists in resilient shock absorbers, such as helical compression springs.
Academic text (1995)
Synonyms
22
2.7
A layer of air or material that reduces force when one thing hits another
20
5.8
A part in a vehicle that absorbs sudden movement
11
7.2
A device that reduces vibrations in machines, buildings, or speakers
Antonyms
How Effective
- Specialized
2
4.2
- Specialized
3
3.9
- Specialized
11
7.2
67
3.7
Surface Forms
Morphology
shock + absorber
The compound is fully compositional: 'shock' (an impact) + 'absorber' (something that absorbs) yields a device that absorbs shocks. The agentive formation '-er' and the noun-noun compound pattern are regular and cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents would readily infer the meaning.
Etymology
Shock absorber comes from the simple image of a vehicle hitting a bump: the shock from the bump would make the car bounce, and the absorber is the part that takes in that force so the car does not jump. So it means 'a device that softens sudden hits' and makes the ride smoother.