ratchet

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The triple lock creates a big but unpredictable ratchet for the government’s social-spending bill: No one can guess over time how fast old-age social spending will grow.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 2, 2026

But a third factor is entangled in this equation: access to food and water, both of which become more difficult to acquire as wars spread and global temperatures ratchet upward.

From Salon • Mar. 17, 2026

Likewise, $200 oil would ratchet up the probability of a global recession—40% to 60%—and global stock markets would fall 15% to 30% from their highs.

From Barron's • Mar. 16, 2026

"The temporal ratchet mechanism fundamentally alters our view of how cytokinesis works," emphasized Jan Brugués, corresponding author of the study.

From Science Daily • Feb. 28, 2026

Plate 15 shows his design for a ratchet winch.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton