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propulsion

propulsion

noun proh-pool-ZYOHN Rare
Travel & Places Transportation

Usage Note

Propulsion is used in engineering, physics, and everyday language to describe the force that drives something forward — propulsion à réaction (jet propulsion), propulsion nucléaire (nuclear propulsion). The verb propulser means 'to propel', and propulseur (m) refers to a thruster or propellant. The word also appears figuratively, as in propulsion vers le succès — 'propulsion toward success'.

Examples

"Ce navire fonctionne à la propulsion nucléaire."

Natural Translation

This ship runs on nuclear propulsion.

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