01 a. Allowing passage in either of four directions; as, a four-way cock, or valve.
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1.
Allowing passage in either of four directions; as, a four-way cock, or valve.
Phrases & compounds
Four-way cock —
a cock connected with four pipes or ports, and having two or more passages in the plug, by which the adjacent pipes or ports may be made to communicate; formerly used as a valve in the steam engine, and now for various other purposes. In the illustration, a leads to the upper end of a steam engine cylinder, and b to the lower end; c is the steam pipe, and d the exhaust pipe.