Word.ws English Dictionary

wheelslip

wheelslip noun: a problem in starting or running a locomotive or train, where excess power supplied to the driven wheels causes them to turn against the rail, especially when the rails are slippery, without moving the train forward.

Noun

wheelslip (uncountable)

  1. A problem in starting or running a locomotive or train, where excess power supplied to the driven wheels causes them to turn against the rail, especially when the rails are slippery, without moving the train forward.
    • Near-synonym: wheelspin
    • The traction motors are connected in three parallel groups of two in series, and the mid-points of each pair of motors are connected together; the mid-point connection is used in conjunction with relays to form a device which is sensitive to wheelslip, thus leading to an improvement in adhesion.1960 April, “English Electric diesels for the Sudan Railways”, in Trains Illustrated, page 218
    Synonyms:
    wheelspin

Examples of wheelslip in a sentence

  • Minor changes to control gear include the provision of automatic wheelslip protection, since these units will be operated on lines with ruling gradients of 1 in 60 or 1 in 80.1962 December, “The Oxted Line diesel-electric multiple-units”, in Modern Railways, page 385:
  • Daily diagramming involves the single-heading of 1400-tonne trains over the northern banks, where wheelslip can be experienced when the rails are wet.2023 July 26, David Clough, “Technology progression defines Class 93”, in RAIL, number 988, page 54:

Synonyms of wheelslip

Origin of wheelslip

From wheel + slip.

Questions about wheelslip

What does wheelslip mean?
Wheelslip means a problem in starting or running a locomotive or train, where excess power supplied to the driven wheels causes them to turn against the rail, especially when the rails are slippery, without moving the train forward.
How do you use wheelslip in a sentence?
Minor changes to control gear include the provision of automatic wheelslip protection, since these units will be operated on lines with ruling gradients of 1 in 60 or 1 in 80.
What part of speech is wheelslip?
Wheelslip is a noun.

Words near wheelslip in the dictionary

  1. wheels within wheels
  2. wheels-up
  3. wheelset
  4. wheelsets
  5. wheelslide
  6. wheelslip
  7. wheelsman
  8. wheelsmen
  9. wheelsmith
  10. wheelsmiths
  11. wheelspan

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: wheelslip (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this entry: “wheelslip.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/wheelslip. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.