Standard Lemma guide

cylinder

noun · verb · 14 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • UK: /ˈsɪlɪndə(ɹ)/
  • US: /ˈsɪləndɚ/
  • US: [ˈsɪlɪ̈ndɚ]
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: S IH1 L AH0 N D ER0 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
  • CMU ARPABET 2: S IH1 L IH0 N D ER0 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A surface created by projecting a closed two-dimensional curve along an axis intersecting the plane of the curve.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: geometry, mathematics, sciences

Examples

  • When the two-dimensional curve is a circle, the cylinder is called a circular cylinder. When the axis is perpendicular to the plane of the curve, the cylinder is called a right cylinder. In non-mathematical usage, both right and circular are usually implied.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

A solid figure bounded by a cylinder and two parallel planes intersecting the cylinder.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: geometry, mathematics, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

Any object in the form of a circular cylinder.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

A cylindrical cavity or chamber in a mechanism, such as the counterpart to a piston found in a piston-driven engine.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

The space in which a piston travels inside a reciprocating engine or pump.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: automotive, transport, vehicles

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

noun

Meaning 6

A container in the form of a cylinder with rounded ends for storing pressurized gas; a gas cylinder.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

7

noun

Meaning 7

An early form of phonograph recording, made on a wax cylinder.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

8

noun

Meaning 8

The part of a revolver that contains chambers for the cartridges.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

9

noun

Meaning 9

The corresponding tracks on a vertical arrangement of disks in a disk drive considered as a unit of data capacity.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: computing, engineering, mathematics, natural-sciences, physical-sciences, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

10

verb

Meaning 10

To calender; to press (paper, etc.) between rollers to make it glossy.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

11

noun

Meaning 11

a cylindrical container for oxygen or compressed air

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: container

12

noun

Meaning 12

a chamber within which piston moves

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: piston chamber

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: chamber

Narrower terms: brake cylinder, hydraulic brake cylinder, master cylinder

13

noun

Meaning 13

a solid bounded by a cylindrical surface and two parallel planes (the bases)

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: solid

Narrower terms: roll, roller

14

noun

Meaning 14

a surface generated by rotating a parallel line around a fixed line

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: round shape

Narrower terms: brake drum, drum, shank, stem, stalactite, stalagmite, barrel, pipe, tube

History

Etymology

From Middle French chilindre, cylindre, from Latin cylindrus, from Ancient Greek κύλινδρος (kúlindros), from κυλίνδω (kulíndō) "I roll or wallow" (intransitive). Doublet of calander and calender.

Across languages

Translations

238 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Albanian: cilindër — geometry: surface
  • Arabic: أُسْطُوَانَة (ʔusṭuwāna) — geometry: surface
  • Armenian: գլան (glan) — geometry: surface
  • Azerbaijani: silindr — geometry: surface
  • Belarusian: цылі́ндр (cylíndr) — geometry: surface
  • Belarusian: цылі́ндар (cylíndar) — geometry: surface
  • Bengali: নল (nol) — geometry: surface
  • Bulgarian: цили́ндър (cilíndǎr) — geometry: surface
  • Burmese: ဆလင်ဒါ (hca.langda) — geometry: surface
  • Catalan: cilindre — geometry: surface
  • Chinese Mandarin: 圓柱體 /圆柱体 (yuánzhùtǐ) — geometry: surface
  • Chinese Mandarin: 圓柱 /圆柱 (yuánzhù) — geometry: surface
  • Czech: válcová plocha — geometry: surface
  • Czech: válec — geometry: surface
  • Danish: cylinder — geometry: surface
  • Dutch: cilinder — geometry: surface
  • Estonian: silinder — geometry: surface
  • Faroese: sylindari — geometry: surface
  • Finnish: lieriö — geometry: surface
  • Finnish: ympyrälieriö — geometry: surface
  • French: cylindre — geometry: surface
  • Galician: cilindro — geometry: surface
  • Georgian: ცილინდრი (cilindri) — geometry: surface
  • German: Zylinder — geometry: surface
  • Greek: κύλινδρος (kýlindros) — geometry: surface
  • Ancient Greek: κύλινδρος (kúlindros) — geometry: surface
  • Hebrew: גָּלִיל (galíl) — geometry: surface
  • Hindi: सिलिंडर (siliṇḍar) — geometry: surface
  • Hungarian: henger — geometry: surface
  • Icelandic: sívalningur — geometry: surface
  • Indonesian: silinder — geometry: surface
  • Irish: sorcóir — geometry: surface
  • Italian: cilindro — geometry: surface
  • Japanese: 円柱 (enchū) — geometry: surface
  • Japanese: シリンダー (shirindā) — geometry: surface
  • Kazakh: цилиндр (silindr) — geometry: surface
  • Khmer: ស៊ីឡាំង (siilang) — geometry: surface
  • Korean: 원기둥 (won'gidung) — geometry: surface
  • Korean: 실린더 (sillindeo) — geometry: surface
  • Korean: 원통 (wontong) — geometry: surface
  • Kyrgyz: цилиндр (tsilindr) — geometry: surface
  • Lao: ກະບັ້ງ — geometry: surface
  • Lao: ກະບອກ (ka bǭk) — geometry: surface
  • Latin: cylindrus — geometry: surface
  • Latvian: cilindrs — geometry: surface
  • Lithuanian: cilindras — geometry: surface
  • Macedonian: цилиндар (cilindar) — geometry: surface
  • Malay: silinder — geometry: surface
  • Malay: bulat buluh — geometry: surface
  • Mongolian: цилиндр (cilindr) — geometry: surface
  • Norwegian Bokmål: sylinder — geometry: surface
  • Persian: استوانه (ostovâne) — geometry: surface
  • Polish: cylinder — geometry: surface
  • Polish: walec — geometry: surface
  • Portuguese: cilindro — geometry: surface
  • Romanian: cilindru — geometry: surface
  • Russian: цили́ндр (cilíndr) — geometry: surface
  • Serbo-Croatian: цилѝндар — geometry: surface
  • Serbo-Croatian: ва́љак — geometry: surface
  • Serbo-Croatian: cilìndar — geometry: surface
  • Serbo-Croatian: váljak — geometry: surface
  • Sinhalese: සිලින්ඩරය (silinḍaraya) — geometry: surface
  • Slovak: valec — geometry: surface
  • Slovene: valj — geometry: surface
  • Spanish: cilindro — geometry: surface
  • Swedish: cylinder — geometry: surface
  • Tagalog: bumbong — geometry: surface
  • Tajik: силиндр (silindr) — geometry: surface
  • Tajik: устувона (ustuvona) — geometry: surface
  • Tatar: цилиндр (tsilindr) — geometry: surface
  • Thai: ทรงกระบอก (song-grà-bɔ̀ɔk) — geometry: surface
  • Thai: กระบอก (grà-bɔ̀ɔk) — geometry: surface
  • Turkish: silindir — geometry: surface
  • Turkish: dürüm — geometry: surface
  • Ottoman Turkish: سلندر (silindir) — geometry: surface
  • Turkmen: silindr — geometry: surface
  • Ukrainian: цилі́ндр (cylíndr) — geometry: surface
  • Ukrainian: валок (valok) — geometry: surface
  • Uyghur: سىلىندىر (silindir) — geometry: surface
  • Uzbek: silindr — geometry: surface
  • Vietnamese: hình trụ tròn — geometry: surface
  • Vurës: wövötu — geometry: surface
  • Yiddish: צילינדער (tsilinder) — geometry: surface
  • Zazaki: silindir — geometry: surface
  • Armenian: գլան (glan) — geometry: solid
  • Belarusian: цылі́ндр (cylíndr) — geometry: solid
  • Belarusian: цылі́ндар (cylíndar) — geometry: solid
  • Bengali: বেলন (belon) — geometry: solid
  • Bulgarian: цили́ндър (cilíndǎr) — geometry: solid
  • Catalan: cilindre — geometry: solid
  • Czech: válec — geometry: solid
  • Danish: cylinder — geometry: solid
  • Dutch: cilinder — geometry: solid
  • Esperanto: cilindro — geometry: solid
  • Finnish: lieriö — geometry: solid
  • Finnish: ympyrälieriö — geometry: solid
  • Finnish: sylinteri — geometry: solid
  • French: cylindre — geometry: solid
  • German: Zylinder — geometry: solid
  • Greek: κύλινδρος (kýlindros) — geometry: solid
  • Ancient Greek: κύλινδρος (kúlindros) — geometry: solid
  • Ido: cilindro — geometry: solid
  • Irish: sorcóir soladach — geometry: solid
  • Italian: cilindro — geometry: solid
  • Latin: cylindrus — geometry: solid
  • Macedonian: цилиндар (cilindar) — geometry: solid
  • Malay: silinder — geometry: solid
  • Malay: torak-torak — geometry: solid
  • Malay: belujur — geometry: solid
  • Māori: rango — geometry: solid
  • Norwegian Bokmål: sylinder — geometry: solid
  • Polish: walec — geometry: solid
  • Portuguese: cilindro — geometry: solid
  • Romanian: cilindru — geometry: solid
  • Russian: цили́ндр (cilíndr) — geometry: solid
  • Serbo-Croatian: ва́љак — geometry: solid
  • Serbo-Croatian: стублина — geometry: solid
  • Serbo-Croatian: váljak — geometry: solid
  • Serbo-Croatian: stublina — geometry: solid
  • Slovak: valec — geometry: solid
  • Slovene: valj — geometry: solid
  • Spanish: cilindro — geometry: solid
  • Tagalog: bumbong — geometry: solid
  • Turkish: silindir — geometry: solid
  • Turkish: dürüm — geometry: solid
  • Ottoman Turkish: سلندر (silindir) — geometry: solid
  • Ukrainian: цилі́ндр (cylíndr) — geometry: solid
  • Ukrainian: валок (valok) — geometry: solid
  • Yiddish: צילינדער (tsilinder) — geometry: solid
  • Armenian: գլան (glan) — any cylindrical object
  • Bulgarian: ва́ляк (váljak) — any cylindrical object
  • Catalan: cilindre — any cylindrical object
  • Czech: válec — any cylindrical object
  • Danish: cylinder — any cylindrical object
  • Dutch: cilinder — any cylindrical object
  • Finnish: lieriö — any cylindrical object
  • Finnish: sylinteri — any cylindrical object
  • French: cylindre — any cylindrical object
  • Galician: cilindro — any cylindrical object
  • German: Zylinder — any cylindrical object
  • Greek: κύλινδρος (kýlindros) — any cylindrical object
  • Ancient Greek: κύλινδρος (kúlindros) — any cylindrical object
  • Hebrew: גָּלִיל (ga'lil) — any cylindrical object
  • Italian: cilindro — any cylindrical object
  • Latin: cylindrus — any cylindrical object
  • Macedonian: валец (valec) — any cylindrical object
  • Māori: puoto — any cylindrical object
  • Polish: cylinder — any cylindrical object
  • Portuguese: cilindro — any cylindrical object
  • Romanian: cilindru — any cylindrical object
  • Russian: цили́ндр (cilíndr) — any cylindrical object
  • Russian: ва́лик (válik) — any cylindrical object
  • Slovak: valec — any cylindrical object
  • Slovene: valj — any cylindrical object
  • Spanish: cilindro — any cylindrical object
  • Tagalog: bumbong — any cylindrical object
  • Turkish: silindir — any cylindrical object
  • Turkish: dürük — any cylindrical object
  • Ottoman Turkish: مردانه (merdane) — any cylindrical object
  • Ukrainian: вало́к (valók) — any cylindrical object
  • Yiddish: צילינדער (tsilinder) — any cylindrical object
  • Bulgarian: цили́ндър (cilíndǎr) — cavity or chamber
  • Catalan: cilindre — cavity or chamber
  • Czech: válec — cavity or chamber
  • Danish: cylinder — cavity or chamber
  • Dutch: cilinder — cavity or chamber
  • Finnish: sylinteri — cavity or chamber
  • French: cylindre — cavity or chamber
  • German: Zylinder — cavity or chamber
  • German: Brennkammer — cavity or chamber
  • Greek: κύλινδρος (kýlindros) — cavity or chamber
  • Hebrew: גָּלִיל (ga'lil) — cavity or chamber
  • Italian: cilindro — cavity or chamber
  • Japanese: 気筒 (kitō) — cavity or chamber
  • Macedonian: цилиндар (cilindar) — cavity or chamber
  • Māori: puoto — cavity or chamber
  • Portuguese: cilindro — cavity or chamber
  • Russian: цили́ндр (cilíndr) — cavity or chamber
  • Spanish: cilindro — cavity or chamber
  • Bulgarian: цили́ндър (cilíndǎr) — the space in which a piston travels
  • Catalan: cilindre — the space in which a piston travels
  • Chinese Mandarin: 氣缸 /气缸 (qìgāng) — the space in which a piston travels
  • Finnish: sylinteri — the space in which a piston travels
  • French: cylindre — the space in which a piston travels
  • French: vérin — the space in which a piston travels
  • Galician: cilindro — the space in which a piston travels
  • German: Zylinder — the space in which a piston travels
  • Indonesian: sillinder — the space in which a piston travels
  • Latin: modiolus — the space in which a piston travels
  • Malay: silinder — the space in which a piston travels
  • Māori: puoto — the space in which a piston travels
  • Spanish: cilindro — the space in which a piston travels
  • Turkish: itenek — the space in which a piston travels
  • Vietnamese: xi lanh — the space in which a piston travels
  • Vietnamese: xi-lanh — the space in which a piston travels
  • Bulgarian: бараба́н (barabán) — container
  • Danish: cylinder — container
  • Finnish: sylinteri — container
  • Finnish: pullo — container
  • French: bonbonne — container
  • German: Zylinder — container
  • Greek: κύλινδρος (kýlindros) — container
  • Hebrew: גָּלִיל (ga'lil) — container
  • Hungarian: palack — container
  • Polish: butla — container
  • Portuguese: botijão — container
  • Portuguese: botija — container
  • Portuguese: bujão — container
  • Russian: балло́н (ballón) — container
  • Russian: цили́ндр (cilíndr) — container
  • Russian: бидо́н (bidón) — container
  • Russian: бараба́н (barabán) — container
  • Spanish: cilindro — container
  • Spanish: bombona — container
  • Spanish: garrafa — container
  • Finnish: sylinteri — recording
  • Finnish: lieriö — recording
  • Finnish: vahasylinteri — recording
  • Finnish: vahalieriö — recording
  • French: cylindre phonographique — recording
  • French: cylindre — recording
  • German: Rolle — recording
  • German: Zylinder — recording
  • Greek: κύλινδρος (kýlindros) — recording
  • Macedonian: цилиндар (cilindar) — recording
  • Russian: цили́ндр (cilíndr) — recording
  • Russian: ро́лик (rólik) — recording
  • Bulgarian: бараба́н (barabán) — part of a revolver which contains chambers for rounds
  • Chinese Mandarin: 彈巢 /弹巢 (dàncháo) — part of a revolver which contains chambers for rounds
  • Dutch: trommel — part of a revolver which contains chambers for rounds
  • Finnish: rulla — part of a revolver which contains chambers for rounds
  • Finnish: patruunarulla — part of a revolver which contains chambers for rounds
  • French: barillet — part of a revolver which contains chambers for rounds
  • Galician: tambor — part of a revolver which contains chambers for rounds
  • Greek: μύλος (mýlos) — part of a revolver which contains chambers for rounds
  • Macedonian: буренце (burence) — part of a revolver which contains chambers for rounds
  • Norwegian Bokmål: tønne — part of a revolver which contains chambers for rounds
  • Russian: бараба́н (barabán) — part of a revolver which contains chambers for rounds
Real reading context

cylinder in complete knowledge articles