chainlessadj.
/ˈtʃeɪnlɪs/ 1. Without chain or chains: unchained. poetic.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > lack of subjection > freedom or liberty > freedom of action or from restraint > [adjective]
freeeOE
unneedc1175
easyc1200
untiedc1374
unhemmeda1400
largec1400
unrefraineda1500
rampanta1540
unmuzzleda1541
unyoked1573
yokeless1584
licensed1593
unbound1593
wild1599
broad1604
fetterless1604
unconfined1607
ungyved1607
ungaged?1617
unboundeda1625
unfettereda1631
vagabond1635
unmanacled1686
unrestricted1750
haggard-wild1786
unconstrained1796
unshackled1796
chainless1816
rioty1819
untethered1826
unwithholdena1834
bondless1845
fancy-loose1850
constraintless1865
unpressured1879
undammed1896
balls-to-the-wall1967
balls-out1968
1816 Ld. Byron Sonn. Chillon Eternal Spirit of the chainless Mind!
1850 J. S. Blackie tr. Æschylus Lyrical Dramas I. 213 Free and chainless, Wild and reinless.
2. Of a machine, vehicle, etc.: without chain gear or chain drive as a part of the mechanism. (Usually implying its former use.)
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > equipment > machine > parts of machines > wheel > [adjective] > types of cogs or gears
sun-and-planet1796
spiral gearinga1877
chainless1897
planetary1904
epicyclic1906
hypoid1926
positraction1957
1897 Queen 16 Oct. (advt.) The best Chainless Cycle for Ladies.
1905 Daily Chron. 17 June 9/2 Mr. Napier was the first constructor to use this chainless form of transmission for a powerful car.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1889; most recently modified version published online December 2018).
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adj.1816