derailleurn.
/dᵻˈreɪl(j)ə/, U.S. /dəˈreɪlər/ A bicycle gear in which the ratio is changed by switching the line of the chain (while pedalling) so that it jumps to a different sprocket on the rear wheel. Also derailleur gear.
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society > travel > means of travel > a conveyance > vehicle > vehicle propelled by feet > [noun] > cycle > parts and equipment of cycles > gears
crypto-dynamic1883
crypto1886
tricoaster1908
derailleur gear1930
1930 Cycling 11 Apr. 337/1 The Derailleur system of multi-speed gearing is..well-tested..on the Continent, but comparatively new to this country... The gear works by ‘de-railing’ the chain from one back sprocket to another of different size, thus giving a different gear.
1950 Chambers's Encycl. II. 307/2 The most popular variable gear in Great Britain is the 3- and 4-speed hub gear... On the Continent and in America the dérailleur-type gear is more favoured.
1959 Elizabethan Apr. 35/1 My lightweight bike with 4-speed hub gear, which is not so vulnerable as the derailleur.
1975 Which? May 140/3 All our drop handlebar bikes..had derailleur gears.
1984 N.Y. Times 23 Sept. v. 2/1 The whir of well-oiled machinery is interrupted only by decisive clinks as derailleurs move chains to a lower gear for the long, steady climb over the terminal moraine.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1989; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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