loose-coupled

adjective

Of older railway wagons, having a chain coupling between them, without the buffers on each wagon touching those of the next wagon when the train was in motion.

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Meanings

adjectiveloose-coupled (not comparable)
  1. UKhistoricalnot comparablerail transportOf older railway wagons, having a chain coupling between them, without the buffers on each wagon touching those of the next wagon when the train was in motion.

    It consists exclusively of loose-coupled open mineral wagons and a guard's brake van; owing to the isolation of the branch the last-named is equipped with a first aid box and a jack, to enable any emergency to be dealt with rapidly.

    1940 December, Charles E. Lee, “The Wenford Mineral Line”, in Railway Magazine, page 643
    1 more example

    The line here rises in the up direction, for the most part on a 1 in 132 gradient, and three spring-operated catch points—Basildon West, Basildon and Vange—are provided at intervals on the up line between the two stations, to derail any runaway wagons of a loose-coupled freight train.

    1961 December, “Talking of Trains: Derailment near Laindon”, in Trains Illustrated, page 717
Cite this entry
APA

loose-coupled. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/loose-coupled

MLA

“loose-coupled.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/loose-coupled. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “loose-coupled,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/loose-coupled.

Source: loose-coupled on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.