PROPULSION

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does propulsion mean? 

• PROPULSION (noun)
  The noun PROPULSION has 2 senses:

1. a propelling force

2. the act of propelling

  Familiarity information: PROPULSION used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• PROPULSION (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A propelling force

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural phenomena

Hypernyms ("propulsion" is a kind of...):

force ((physics) the influence that produces a change in a physical quantity)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "propulsion"):

nuclear propulsion (the use of a nuclear reactor either to produce electricity to power an engine (as in a nuclear submarine) or to directly heat a propellant (as in nuclear rockets))

reaction propulsion (propulsion that results from the ejection at high velocity of a mass of gas to which the vehicle reacts with an equal and opposite momentum)

Sense 2

Meaning:

The act of propelling

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

actuation; propulsion

Hypernyms ("propulsion" is a kind of...):

act; deed; human action; human activity (something that people do or cause to happen)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "propulsion"):

launch; launching (the act of propelling with force)

launching (the act of moving a newly built vessel into the water for the first time)

drive; driving force; thrust (the act of applying force to propel something)

bowl; roll (the act of rolling something (as the ball in bowling))

throw (the act of throwing (propelling something with a rapid movement of the arm and wrist))

push; pushing (the act of applying force in order to move something away)

pull; pulling (the act of pulling; applying force to move something toward or with you)

heave; lift; raise (the act of raising something)

ejection; expulsion; forcing out; projection (the act of expelling or projecting or ejecting)

jump; jumping (the act of jumping; propelling yourself off the ground)

lob (the act of propelling something (as a ball or shell etc.) in a high arc)

rolling; wheeling (propelling something on wheels)

shooting; shot (the act of firing a projectile)

dribble; dribbling (the propulsion of a ball by repeated taps or kicks)

Derivation:

propel (cause to move forward with force)

propel (give an incentive for action)

 Context examples 

With swift, vigorous propulsion of hands and feet, he lifted his shoulders and half his chest out of water.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

Using its ion propulsion system, Dawn will enter orbit around Ceres on March 6.

('Bright Spot' on Ceres Has Dimmer Companion, NASA)

There was one thwart set as low as possible, a kind of stretcher in the bows, and a double paddle for propulsion.

(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

Dawn has been using its ion propulsion system to maneuver to its first science orbit at Ceres, which it will reach on April 23.

(Dawn Glimpses Ceres' North Pole, NASA)

"We discovered why birds don't need one: their flapping wings don't only offer propulsion — they also orient into the wind passively like a weathervane."

(Scientists discover how birds navigate crosswinds, National Science Foundation)

Platinum decomposes hydrogen peroxide and powers propulsion of the donuts.

(Tiny swimming 'doughnuts' deliver the biomedical goods, National Science Foundation)

The tendency of the individual life is to be static rather than dynamic, and this tendency is made into a propulsion by civilization, where the obvious only is seen, and the unexpected rarely happens.

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)