Illustration of caliper
- caliper 1a
caliper
1 of 2noun
cal·i·per ˈka-lə-pər 
1
a
: any of various measuring instruments having two usually adjustable arms, legs, or jaws used especially to measure diameter or thickness —usually used in plural
a pair of calipers
b
: a device for pressing a frictional material (such as a brake pad) against the sides of a rotating wheel or disc
2
: thickness especially of paper, cardboard, or a tree
caliper
2 of 2verb
calipered; calipering ˈka-lə-p(ə-)riŋ
transitive verb
: to measure by or as if by calipers
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web
Dave Vanderwerp, Car and Driver, 23 July 2022 Racing tech came into play again to cool the brakes, which are fed air via F1-inspired caliper cooling ducts that can lower pad temperatures by 50 degrees during hard track use. Elana Scherr, Car and Driver, 18 May 2022 In a disc brake, fluid pushing into the brake caliper is what moves your brake pads inward to clamp down on the rotor and slow the car using that friction. Mike Allen, Popular Mechanics, 8 Oct. 2020 This program offers residents one 1¾-inch caliper tree planted in their tree lawn for $100. Shirley Macfarland, cleveland, 10 June 2022 Use the flashlight to inspect the inside of the caliper. Joe Lindsey, Outside Online, 3 June 2020 Carefully press each pad back into the caliper body to re-seat the pistons. Joe Lindsey, Outside Online, 3 June 2020 Tesla is recalling just under 6000 Model 3 sedans and Model Y crossovers for loose brake caliper bolts that might disassemble and cause low tire pressures. Connor Hoffman, Car and Driver, 3 June 2021 Smith says his team soon found that using a hand caliper to measure the seam height of soft cotton wasn’t precise enough. Tim Newcomb, Popular Mechanics, 12 Apr. 2022 Tony Markovich, Car and Driver, 12 Jan. 2018 See More
Noun
In the rear, an electric motor—similar to that of today's ubiquitous electric parking brakes—directly squeezes each floating caliper, and there's no hydraulic connection whatsoever. Dave Vanderwerp, Car and Driver, 23 July 2022 Racing tech came into play again to cool the brakes, which are fed air via F1-inspired caliper cooling ducts that can lower pad temperatures by 50 degrees during hard track use. Elana Scherr, Car and Driver, 18 May 2022 In a disc brake, fluid pushing into the brake caliper is what moves your brake pads inward to clamp down on the rotor and slow the car using that friction. Mike Allen, Popular Mechanics, 8 Oct. 2020 This program offers residents one 1¾-inch caliper tree planted in their tree lawn for $100. Shirley Macfarland, cleveland, 10 June 2022 Use the flashlight to inspect the inside of the caliper. Joe Lindsey, Outside Online, 3 June 2020 Carefully press each pad back into the caliper body to re-seat the pistons. Joe Lindsey, Outside Online, 3 June 2020 Tesla is recalling just under 6000 Model 3 sedans and Model Y crossovers for loose brake caliper bolts that might disassemble and cause low tire pressures. Connor Hoffman, Car and Driver, 3 June 2021 Smith says his team soon found that using a hand caliper to measure the seam height of soft cotton wasn’t precise enough. Tim Newcomb, Popular Mechanics, 12 Apr. 2022 Verb
Standard Tornado Red calipers signal to the 99.999999 percent that this is indeed the V-8 trim. Tony Markovich, Car and Driver, 12 Jan. 2018 See More Word History
Etymology
Noun
alteration of caliber
First Known Use
Noun
1581, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Verb
1793, in the meaning defined above
Phrases Containing caliper
Kids Definition
caliper
noun
cal·i·per ˈka-lə-pər
: an instrument with two adjustable legs used to measure the thickness of objects or the distance between surfaces —usually used in pl.
a pair of calipers
Medical Definition
caliper 1 of 2
noun
cal·i·per
variants or chiefly British calliper
ˈkal-ə-pər
1
: any of various measuring instruments having two usually adjustable arms, legs, or jaws used to measure thickness, diameter, and distance between surfaces —usually used in plural
a pair of calipers
2
: caliper splint
caliper
2 of 2transitive verb
variants or chiefly British calliper
calipered; calipering -p(ə-)riŋ
: to measure by or as if by calipers
calipered
verb
as in calibrated
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- calibrated
- laid off
- weighed
- measured
- quantified
- worked out
- figured out
- added up
- scaled
- spanned
- gauged
- marked (off)
- quantitated
- evaluated
- found out
- computed
- assessed
- estimated
- appraised
- gaged
- valued
- doped (out)
- figured
- calculated
- supposed
- ciphered
- ascertained
- conjectured
- judged
- discovered
- valuated
- summed
- tallied
- guessed
- determined
- guesstimated
- reckoned
- totaled
- totalled