From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishpulleypul‧ley /ˈpʊli/ noun [countable] TEMa piece of equipment consisting of a wheel over which a rope or chain is pulled to lift heavy things
Examples from the Corpus
pulley• He saw a cauldron to one side with its lid hanging above it, suspended on a pulley.• The Strongbeam Water Low bracket and pulley makes it simplicity itself to lower and raise the basket as required.• Some were placed in beds framed with ropes and pulleys to prevent movement.• The Corrado's supercharger sits alongside the transversely mounted engine and is belt-driven off the crankshaft pulley at 1.66 times engine speed.• One of the walls in the gym had dual pulley cables.• Above the stove there hung a laundry rack, suspended on a system of pulleys.• A fellow engineer came to check on the work, and to do so had to ascend on a rope pulley.• As they ran over the pulleys, a slurry of sand or tungsten carbide was poured on the wire.Origin pulley (1300-1400) Old French poulie, probably from Greek polos; → POLE1 