overhead cam

noun

A type of cam (and camshaft) in an internal combustion engine, and thus also (metonymic) the type of valvetrain design, the type of engine that uses it, or an instance of such an engine; this design has the inlet and exhaust valves in the cylinder head and has the camshaft(s) up above the valves too.

“This engine is an overhead cam.”

Similar
OHC
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Meanings

nounoverhead cam (plural overhead cams)

plural overhead cams

  1. automotiveA type of cam (and camshaft) in an internal combustion engine, and thus also (metonymic) the type of valvetrain design, the type of engine that uses it, or an instance of such an engine; this design has the inlet and exhaust valves in the cylinder head and has the camshaft(s) up above the valves too.

    This engine is an overhead cam.

    2 more examples

    This engine has an overhead cam.

    This engine is an overhead cam model.

    Synonyms: OHC

Synonyms & antonyms

nounA type of cam (and camshaft) in an internal combustion engine, and thus also (metonymic) the type of valvetrain design, the type of engine that uses it, or an instance of such an engine; this design has the inlet and exhaust valves in the cylinder head and has the camshaft(s) up above the valves too.

Similar
OHC
Cite this entry
APA

overhead cam. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/overhead%20cam

MLA

“overhead cam.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/overhead%20cam. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “overhead cam,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/overhead%20cam.

Source: overhead cam on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.