water hammer Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun the banging sound of steam in pipes

WordNet

Wa"ter ham"mer
Definitions
(Physics)
  1. A vessel partly filled with water, exhausted of air, and hermetically sealed. When reversed or shaken, the water being unimpeded by air, strikes the sides in solid mass with a sound like that of a hammer.
  2. A concussion, or blow, made by water in striking, as against the sides of a pipe or vessel containing it.

Webster 1913