capstan

capstan has 2 senses in the JumbleFix dictionary. Letters: 7.

Definitions

• n.. A vertical cleated drum or cylinder, revolving on an upright spindle, and surmounted by a drumhead with sockets for bars or levers. It is much used, especially on shipboard, for moving or raising heavy weights or exerting great power by traction upon a rope or cable, passing around the drum. It is operated either by steam power or by a number of men walking around the capstan, each pushing on the end of a lever fixed in its socket.
• n.. a windlass rotated in a horizontal plane around a vertical axis; used on ships for weighing anchor or raising heavy sails