nacelle

Etymology

Borrowed from French nacelle.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /nəˈsɛl/

Noun

nacelle (plural nacelles)

1. A separate streamlined enclosure mounted on an aircraft to house an engine, cargo, or crew.
2. The part between the tower and rotor of a wind turbine.
3. The compartment that holds passengers on a hot-air balloon, a dirigible, or an aerostat; a gondola.
4. (obsolete) A small boat.

Etymology

From Old French nacele (“small boat”), from Late Latin navicella, diminutive of Latin navis (“boat”). Doublet of navicelle.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /nasɛl/

Noun

nacelle f (plural nacelles)

1. (literary) skiff
2. gondola (of hot-air balloon etc.)
3. pod (of spacecraft)
4. cradle

Further reading

• “nacelle” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).