aeolipile

/ˈiː.əʊ.lɪ.pʌɪl/

aeolipile means A steam engine powered by rocket propulsion due to escaping steam, consisting of a pressure vessel mounted on a bearing, with one or more tubes which exhaust steam tangentially to the rotation axis so as to create rotation. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 97 out of 100.

aeolipile is pronounced /ˈiː.əʊ.lɪ.pʌɪl/.

Why “aeolipile” is a great word

AEOLIPILE — [Noun] A simple radial steam turbine, often considered the first recorded steam engine, consisting of a rotating spherical vessel that expels steam through tangential nozzles. From French éolipyle, from Latin Aeoli pylae (“doorway of Aeolus”), referring to the Greek god of the winds. Unlike a modern “steam turbine”—a term for efficient, bladed machinery—or “Hero’s engine”—an exact synonym that credits its ancient inventor—the aeolipile names a beautiful, futile prototype. It is the hiss of steam from a bronze sphere, the mesmerizing spin of a hollow celestial model, and the ghost of potential power trapped in a temple's display case; a doorway opened onto a power that would remain unexplored for a millennium and a half.

Etymology

From French éolipyle, from Latin Aeoli pylae (“doorway of Aeolus”).

noun

A steam engine powered by rocket propulsion due to escaping steam, consisting of a pressure vessel mounted on a bearing, with one or more tubes which exhaust steam tangentially to the rotation axis so as to create rotation.