turning circle

English

A turning circle for buses en route at an off-road supermarket bus stop

Noun

turning circle (plural turning circles)

1. (automotive, of a road vehicle) The circular path formed by the wheel furthest from the centre of the turn when turning to the maximum extent.
   • 1944 November and December, T. F. Cameron, “Motor and Cartage Working”, in Railway Magazine, page 335:

     But the horse has left his mark, for his successor is a mechanical horse designed to a large extent to copy the leading characteristics of the live horse; easy attachment to or detachment from its load, a small turning circle, a small appetite for petrol, but giving a much higher acceleration and speed, and so capable of much greater distances, so that fewer cartage units are required.

2. (nautical) The path followed by a vessel’s center of gravity when it makes a complete turn of 360° with a consistent rudder angle. (FM 55-501)
3. A place where a vehicle can turn and face in the opposite direction.

Translations

of a road vehicle

• Dutch: draaicirkel (nl) m
• Finnish: kääntöympyrä
• German: Wendekreis (de) m
• Irish: caschiorcal m

See also

• cul-de-sac