emery wheel

7.0

A hard round wheel that grinds, polishes, or sharpens metal

noun
/ˈɛməri wɪl/

Specialized

: rueda de esmeril

The machinist used an emery wheel to sharpen the tool's edge.

Examples

The emery wheel on the bench grinder needed to be replaced after extensive use.
He uses an emery wheel to polish metal surfaces.
Always wear safety goggles when working with an emery wheel.
The emery wheel is essential for sharpening tools.
Always wear safety goggles when working with an emery wheel.
The emery wheel on the bench grinder needed to be replaced after extensive use.
The machinist used an emery wheel to sharpen the tool's edge.

Synonyms

grinding wheel

vsemery wheel

Specialized

1 3.9

A round wheel of rough material that you use to sharpen or shape metal

is for general abrasive work including polishing and sharpening

buffing wheel

vsemery wheel

Specialized

1 7.4

A wheel covered with soft cloth used to polish metal or wood

uses rougher abrasive material for grinding rather than soft polishing

emery stone

vsemery wheel

Specialized

7.4

A hard block used to sharpen or polish metal and jewelry

is a circular manufactured abrasive tool used for grinding polishing and sharpening

How Abrasive

grinding wheel

Specialized

1 3.9

grindstone

9 6.9

emery wheel

Specialized

7.0

buffing wheel

Specialized

1 7.4

Surface Forms

emery wheel singular

emery wheels plural

Morphology

emery + wheel

The meaning is directly derivable from combining 'emery' (an abrasive mineral) and 'wheel' (a rotating disc): a wheel made of or coated with emery used for grinding or sharpening. This noun–noun compounding and the functional inference (used for grinding/polishing) follow regular compositional patterns, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents can understand it.

Etymology

Emery wheel comes from the hard stone emery and a spinning wheel covered with it. That rough, turning wheel was used to 'grind', 'polish' and 'sharpen' metal, so the name now means a circular tool for those jobs.