feed water

Feed \Feed\, n.
   1. That which is eaten; esp., food for beasts; fodder;
      pasture; hay; grain, ground or whole; as, the best feed
      for sheep.
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   2. A grazing or pasture ground. --Shak.
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   3. An allowance of provender given to a horse, cow, etc.; a
      meal; as, a feed of corn or oats.
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   4. A meal, or the act of eating. [R.]
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            For such pleasure till that hour
            At feed or fountain never had I found. --Milton.
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   5. The water supplied to steam boilers.
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   6. (Mach.)
      (a) The motion, or act, of carrying forward the stuff to
          be operated upon, as cloth to the needle in a sewing
          machine; or of producing progressive operation upon
          any material or object in a machine, as, in a turning
          lathe, by moving the cutting tool along or in the
          work.
      (b) The supply of material to a machine, as water to a
          steam boiler, coal to a furnace, or grain to a run of
          stones.
      (c) The mechanism by which the action of feeding is
          produced; a feed motion.
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   {Feed bag}, a nose bag containing feed for a horse or mule.
      

   {Feed cloth}, an apron for leading cotton, wool, or other
      fiber, into a machine, as for carding, etc.

   {Feed door}, a door to a furnace, by which to supply coal.

   {Feed head}.
      (a) A cistern for feeding water by gravity to a steam
          boiler.
      (b) (Founding) An excess of metal above a mold, which
          serves to render the casting more compact by its
          pressure; -- also called a {riser}, {deadhead}, or
          simply {feed} or {head} --Knight.

   {Feed heater}.
      (a) (Steam Engine) A vessel in which the feed water for
          the boiler is heated, usually by exhaust steam.
      (b) A boiler or kettle in which is heated food for stock.
          

   {Feed motion}, or {Feed gear} (Mach.), the train of mechanism
      that gives motion to the part that directly produces the
      feed in a machine.

   {Feed pipe}, a pipe for supplying the boiler of a steam
      engine, etc., with water.

   {Feed pump}, a force pump for supplying water to a steam
      boiler, etc.

   {Feed regulator}, a device for graduating the operation of a
      feeder. --Knight.

   {Feed screw}, in lathes, a long screw employed to impart a
      regular motion to a tool rest or tool, or to the work.

   {Feed water}, water supplied to a steam boiler, etc.

   {Feed wheel} (Mach.), a kind of feeder. See {Feeder}, n., 8.
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