derailleur
English
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derailleur
- /dɪˈɹeɪl(j)ə/ UK
- /dəˈɹeɪləɹ/ US
Where it comes from
Unadapted borrowing from French dérailleur, from dérailler (“to derail”) + -eur (suffix forming masculine agent nouns from verbs). Dérailler is derived from dé- (prefix meaning ‘away; from; off’) + rail (“rail”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₃reǵ- (“to righten; to straighten”)) + -er (suffix forming infinitives of first-conjugation verbs). Doublet of derailer.
noun derailleurs · dérailleur · derailer
- A mechanism on a bicycle wheel used while cycling to move the bicycle chain from one sprocket (gear) to another, to change speeds. [H. A. G.] Keates again rode a fully-equipped machine (lamp excepted) and used a derailleur gear. It was probably this variation which enabled him to progress so well against the wind and yet take full advantage of its assistance on the return trip.
- The entire gearset on a bicycle with such a mechanism.
Translations
Every language
noun mechanism on a bicycle wheel used while cycling to move the bicycle chain from one sprocket to another, to change speeds
| Español | cambio de marchas, descarrilador, desviador |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 變速器 /变速器 biànsùqì |
| Português | descarrilador, desviador |
| Français | dérailleur |
| Deutsch | Umwerfer, Schaltwerk |
| Italiano | deragliatore |
| Русский | переключа́тель pereključátelʹ |
| Tiếng Việt | sang đĩa |
Talk about this word "derailleur." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/derailleur. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. derailleur. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/derailleur "derailleur." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/derailleur.Cite this
@misc{derailleur_2026,
title = {derailleur},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/derailleur},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
