hydraulic press

American

noun

a machine permitting a small force applied to a small piston to produce, through fluid pressure, a large force on a large piston.

hydraulic press British

noun

a press that utilizes liquid pressure to enable a small force applied to a small piston to produce a large force on a larger piston. The small piston moves through a proportionately greater distance than the larger

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of hydraulic press

First recorded in 1850–55

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Last year, Apple apologized after an iPad Pro ad that showed a hydraulic press crushing musical instruments such as a piano and other creative tools before the thin device was revealed, sparked backlash.

From Los Angeles Times

Using a hand-crank press is strenuous work, and because the seeds are high in pectin, it can gum up the mechanics of a commercial hydraulic press.

From Washington Post

When the glue is heated and sticky, workers align the right size of sole beneath the boot and use a hydraulic press to push the boot, glue and sole together.

From New York Times

Nor was Galileo, when he invented the hydraulic press, working on some new, practical problem that only a competent engineer could tackle.

From Literature

Recent work using hydraulic presses has shown that many minerals would be unable to hold as much hydrogen and oxygen at mantle temperatures and pressures.

From Science Magazine

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023