expansion bolt
- noun
- /ɪkˈspænʃən boʊlt/
- Specialized
:
tornillo de expansión
- The expansion bolt held the shelf securely.
Examples
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Installing the bracket required drilling a hole and inserting an expansion bolt.
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You should use an expansion bolt when fastening heavy items to concrete or brick surfaces.
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The shelves were secured to the wall using expansion bolts for extra strength.
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I need an expansion bolt for this project.
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To secure the heavy shelf, he used an expansion bolt that tightly gripped the wall.
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The contractor recommended using expansion bolts for mounting the outdoor sign to ensure it stays in place.
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After drilling the hole, she inserted the expansion bolt and tightened it to hold the bracket firmly against the concrete.
Synonyms
1
6.9
A metal screw with a spring part that opens inside a hollow wall to hold heavy items
How Secure
Surface Forms
Morphology
The noun is a straightforward compound: 'expansion' (growing/expanding) + 'bolt' (a fastener), so its meaning — a bolt that expands to secure itself — is directly inferable from the constituents. This follows regular English compounding patterns and is a transparent, literal technical formation that a B1 learner who knows both words can reasonably understand.
Etymology
Expansion bolt comes from how this kind of bolt works: when you put it into a hole and tighten it, its sides expand like a small umbrella opening inside the wall so it can grip the surface. That's why an expansion bolt is used 'to hold tightly' and keep heavy things fixed to concrete or brick.