What is "roller"

Roller \Roll"er\, n.

1. One who, or that which, rolls; especially, a cylinder, sometimes grooved, of wood, stone, metal, etc., used in husbandry and the arts.

2. A bandage; a fillet; properly, a long and broad bandage used in surgery.

3. (Naut.) One of series of long, heavy waves which roll in upon a coast, sometimes in calm weather.

4. A long, belt-formed towel, to be suspended on a rolling cylinder; -- called also roller towel.

5. (Print.) A cylinder coated with a composition made principally of glue and molassess, with which forms of type are inked previously to taking an impression from them.
   --W. Savage.

6. A long cylinder on which something is rolled up; as, the roller of a map.

7. A small wheel, as of a caster, a roller skate, etc.

8. (Zo["o]l.) ANy insect whose larva rolls up leaves; a leaf roller. see Tortrix.

9. [CF. F. rollier.] (Zo["o]l.) Any one of numerous species of Old World picarian birds of the family Coraciad[ae]. The name alludes to their habit of suddenly turning over or ``tumbling'' in flight.

   Note: Many of the species are brilliantly colored. The common European species ( Coracias garrula) has the head, neck, and under parts light blue varied with green, the scapulars chestnut brown, and the tail blue, green, and black. The broad-billed rollers of India and Africa belong to the genus Eurystomus, as the oriental roller ( Eurystomus orientalis), and the Australian roller, or dollar bird ( Eurystomus Pacificus). The latter is dark brown on the head and neck, sea green on the back, and bright blue on the throat, base of the tail, and parts of the wings. It has a silvery-white spot on the middle of each wing. The lilac-breasted roller of Africa is Corcia caudata caudata, a brightly colored bird of the family Corciidae having malachite green, blue, purple-lilac, brown and sea-green feathers from head to tail; it is a popular sight with tourists in Africa.

10. (Zo["o]l.) Any species of small ground snakes of the family Tortricid[ae].

    Ground roller (Zo["o]l.), any one of several species of Madagascar rollers belonging to Atelornis and allied genera. They are nocturnal birds, and feed on the ground.

    Roller bolt, the bar in a carriage to which the traces are attached; a whiffletree. [Eng.]

    Roller gin, a cotton gin inn which rolls are used for separating the seeds from the fiber.

    Roller mill. See under Mill.

    Roller skate, a skate which has small wheels in the place of the metallic runner; -- designed for use in skating upon a smooth, hard surface, other than ice.

late 13c., "thing that rolls;" early 15c., "rolling pin," agent noun from roll (v.). Meaning "hair-curler" is attested from 1795. Roller derby is from 1936 (see derby); roller hockey from 1926. Disparaging religious term holy roller is attested from 1842, American English, from the alleged rolling in the church aisles done by those in the Spirit.

n. 1 (lb en heading) ''Anything that rolls.'' 2 # Any rotate cylindrical device that is part of a machine, especially one used to apply or reduce pressure. 3 # A person who rolls something, as in "cigar roller". 4 # (lb en cricket) A heavy rolling device used to flatten the surface of the pitch. 5 # A cylindrical tool for applying paint or ink. 6 # An agricultural machine used for flattening land and breaking up lumps of earth. 7 # One of a set of small cylindrical tubes used to curl hair. 8 # A roller towel. 9 # A small wheel, as of a caster, a roller skate, etc. 10 # Any insect whose larva rolls up leaf. 11 # Any of the small ground snakes of the family ''(taxlink Tortricidae family noshow=1)''. 12 A long wide bandage used in surgery. 13 A large, wide, curling wave that falls back on itself as it breaks on a coast. 14 (lb en heading) ''A bird.'' 15 # A breed or variety of roller pigeon that rolls (i.e. tumbles or somersaults) backwards (compare Penson roller, Birmingham roller, tumbler, tumbler pigeon, English Short Faced Tumbler, English Long Faced Tumbler). 16 # Any of various aggressive birds, of the family Coraciidae, having bright blue wings and hooked beaks. 17 (also written Roller) A car made by Rolls-Royce. 18 The police (old blues slang). 19 A padded surcingle that is used on horses for training and vaulting. 20 (lb en TV film) A roll of titles or (especially) credits played over film or video; television or film credits.

1. n. a grounder that rolls along the infield

2. a long heavy sea wave as it advances towards the shore [syn: roll, rolling wave]

3. a small wheel without spokes (as on a roller skate)

4. a cylinder that revolves

5. a mechanical device consisting of a cylindrical tube around which the hair is wound to curl it; "a woman with her head full of curlers is not a pretty sight" [syn: curler, hair curler, crimper]

6. Old World bird that tumbles or rolls in flight; related to kingfishers

7. pigeon that executes backward somersaults in flight or on the ground [syn: tumbler, tumbler pigeon]

In BEAM robotics, a Roller is a robot that has a mode of locomotion by rolling all or part of the robot.

The rollers are an Old World family, Coraciidae, of near passerine birds. The group gets its name from the aerial acrobatics some of these birds perform during courtship or territorial flights. Rollers resemble crows in size and build, and share the colourful appearance of kingfishers and bee-eaters, blues and pinkish or cinnamon browns predominating. The two inner front toes are connected, but not the outer one.

They are mainly insect eaters, with Eurystomus species taking their prey on the wing, and those of the genus Coracias diving from a perch to catch food items from on the ground, like giant shrikes.

Although living rollers are birds of warm climates in the Old World, fossil records show that rollers were present in North America during the Eocene. They are monogamous and nest in an unlined hole in a tree or in masonry, and lay 2–4 eggs in the tropics, 3–6 at higher latitudes. The eggs, which are white, hatch after 17–20 days, and the young remain in the nest for approximately another 30 days.

A Roller pigeon is a domesticated breed or variety of pigeon that has been selected for its ability to tumble or roll in the air. For specific varieties of roller pigeons please see:

• Birmingham Roller
• Galatz Roller
• Oriental Roller
• Parlor Roller

The roller is an agricultural tool used for flattening land or breaking up large clumps of soil, especially after ploughing. Typically, rollers are pulled by tractors or, prior to mechanisation, a team of animals such as horses or oxen. As well as for agricultural purposes, rollers are used on cricket pitches and residential lawn areas.

Flatter land makes subsequent weed control and harvesting easier, and rolling can help to reduce moisture loss from cultivated soil. On lawns, rolling levels the land for mowing and compacts the soil surface.

Rollers may be weighted in different ways. For many uses a heavy roller is used. These may consist of one or more cylinders made of thick steel, a thinner steel cylinder filled with concrete, or a cylinder filled with water. A water-filled roller has the advantage that the water may be drained out for lighter use or for transport. In frost-prone areas a water filled roller must be drained for winter storage to avoid breakage due to the expansion for water as it turns to ice.

Roller may mean:

In biology:

• Roller, family of brightly coloured near passerine birds in the genera Coracias and Eurystomus
• Roller (pigeon), varieties of domestic pigeons that tumble or roll in flight

In industry:

• Roller (machine part), a cylindrical machine component or a component of a roller bearing
• Roller (agricultural tool), an agricultural or gardening implement for leveling ground
• Road roller, a heavy machine used in construction of roads and foundations
  • steam roller, either a synonym for or type of road roller
• Rolling (metalworking), a metal forming process in which metal stock is passed through a pair of cylindrical rolls, used in a steel mill
  • hot rolling
  • cold rolling
• wheel, a wheel, often trapped on an axle between two planes, on which a load can be carried and transported

As a personal surname:

• A. Clyde Roller, an American conductor and music educator
• Kyle Roller, baseball player
• Mihail Roller, Romanian communist politician

Other uses:

• A mathematical "roller" is a Curve of constant width
• Roller, an Autobot component of Optimus Prime
• Rollers can refer to a light bar specifically, and by extension, a Police Car
• a padded surcingle, that is used on horses for training and vaulting
• Bicycle rollers, a type of bicycle trainer
• Rollerball pens (or roller pens), a type of writing instrument
• Rolls-Royce, nickname for the motor car brand
• The Australia men's national wheelchair basketball team, officially nicknamed "Rollers"
• the Rollers, rock band which evolved from the Bay City Rollers
• Apache Roller, a blog server written in Java
• Hair roller, also known as hot roller, an implement used in hairdressing to curl hair
• Paint roller, a type of rotating paintbrush
• Roller (BEAM), a kind of robot that moves by rolling
• "Roller", an April Wine song
• Roller (Transformers), a fictional character
• Roller (album), an album by the Italian progressive rock band Goblin