winch

Estimated CEFR level: C2 — Proficiency

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun lifting device consisting of a horizontal cylinder turned by a crank on which a cable or rope winds
  2. verb pull or lift up with or as if with a winch

Etymology

From Middle English wynche, from Old English winċe, from Proto-Germanic *winkijǭ, ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European *weng- (“to bow, bend, arch, curve”), whence also wink.

In classic literature

Synonyms

windlass

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