Plural of crankshaft; rotating shafts in engines that convert the up-and-down motion of pistons into rotational motion to turn wheels.
Compound word from 'crank' (bent handle) and 'shaft' (a rotating bar). The crankshaft design was perfected during the Industrial Revolution and became essential to all modern engines and motors.
A single crankshaft in a car engine must survive over 3 billion rotations in its lifetime while enduring temperatures hotter than the surface of the sun—it's literally one of the hardest-working parts ever invented!
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