Luxury and Classic Fine Watches | Wristwatches Glossary, Acronyms, Abbreviations, Definitions

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-- A --

Arbor --
The Arbor is the axle that a gear rides on.

Assortiment --
(fr) Assortment. The parts of a watch other than the ébauche.

Automatic --
Referring to watches, this means a wristwatch having a self-winding mechanism.  As contrasted with the traditional mechanical wristwatch which requires manual winding, the watch with an automatic mechanism has an eccentric rotor, called a winding rotor, that moves as the wearer's body moves.  That movement of the winding rotor is then captured by a ratchet to automatically wind the watch's mainspring.

Avant-Garde --
(fr) Originally vanguard, or the van or advanced body of an army.  Now meaning, variously: hot, cool, chic, kewl, trendy... as in leading in fashion or trends.

-- B --

Baguette --
A Baguette is a ladies style wristwatch of a thin rectangular or oval shape.

Balance Spring --
The Balance Spring controls the swing of the Balance Wheel.

Balance Wheel --
That part of a watch or chronometer which regulates the action and determines the regularity of beat or strike.

Bezel --
The Bezel is the round outer ring that seals the case.

Bombee / Bombeé --
Bombee.

Bracelet --
The Bracelet is the piece that attaches to the lugs of the case to wrap around the wrist for wearing of the wristwatch.  It is usually made of stainless steel and/or gold.  If made of leather, it is just called a watch band (watchband).
See also Links.

-- C --

Caliber --
Caliber refers to one of a manufacture's movements of the same basic design.
See also ébauche.

Case --
The case is the "body" of the watch.  It contains the movement and the face (dial) and hands.

Certified --
Chronometers that are tested by COSC and meet their standards of accuracy are certified.

Chronograph --
A chronograph is a watch that, in addition to indicating the time of day, also serves as a stop-watch, allowing the user to time events.  The timing can be indicated by the seconds hand and/or additional dials.  There are usually two separate pushbuttons, one to start and stop the timing, and the other to reset the hands and/or dials.

Chronometer / Chronometre --
A chronometer is a timekeeper precise enough to be used as a portable time standard, usually in order to determine longitude by means of celestial navigation.  In the world of watches, the term is also often attached to those tested and certified to meet certain precision standards.  In Switzerland, only timepieces certified by the COSC may use the word 'Chronometer' on them.    Chronometer (Wikipedia)

Column-Wheel Chronograph Mechanism --
The Column Wheel is a refinement to the chronograph mechanism to prevent jamming or damage to the mechanism should the reset button be pushed while the chronograph timing is running.

Complications --
In horology terms, a complication in a mechanical watch is a special feature that causes the design of the watch movement to become more complicated.  A complication is a feature in addition to the basic timekeeping function of a wristwatch.  Examples of complications include:

• Tourbillon
• Perpetual Calendar
• Minute repeater
• Equation of time
• Power reserve
• Moon phases
• Double chronograph

Concealed Clasp --
A Concealed Clasp is a clasp buckle concealed under the bracelet's links for a continuous appearance.

COSC (Contrôle Officiel Suisse des Chronomètres) --
Tests, and certifies watches meeting their standards.  This allows the manufacturer to use the legend "Officially Certified Chronometer".

Crown --
The Crown is the round-shaped knob on the side of the case that allows one to adjust the day, date, and time.  In the case of non- automatic watches, it also is used to wind the mainspring to power the wristwatch.

Crystal --
The Crystal is the glass that covers the dial.  In the best wristwatches, such as rolexwatches, it can be of sapphire, otherwise a plastic crystal.

-- D --

Dial --
The dial is the face of the watch upon which the hour markers are set and the hands are mounted.

Diver's Extension --
The Diver's Extension is a hinged extension as part of a wristwatch's bracelet.  This allows the bracelet to be lengthened so as to fit over a diver's wrist while wearing a wet suit.

Double Chronograph --
The Double Chronograph is also known as a Rattrapante Mechanism, Doppelchronograph, or a "split second" timer.  This complication has two seconds hands.  An additional push button allows one seconds hand to be stopped, to observe a lap time, for instance, while the second seconds hand continues.  A second push of the button makes the stopped seconds hand catch up with the continuing seconds hand.  "Rattrapante" is the French term for this "catching up" of the temporarily stopped hand.

-- E --

Ebauche / Ébauche --
(fr) In English, the ébauche is referred to as a "movement-blank".  The ébauche is an incomplete watch movement, jewelled, and without its regulating mechanism, mainspring, dial(s), or hands.  Compare to movement and caliber.

End Piece --
The End Piece is the small metal part that allows the bracelet or band to be attached to the lugs of the case.

Equation of Time --
Equation of time is a horological complication.

Escapement --
The mechanism interacting with the balance wheel to extract energy from the powering source (the coil spring - mainspring - in a classic wristwatch) so as to turn the various wheels and thus the various dials or hands of a watch or clock.

-- F --

Feuille Hands --
(fr) Leaf-shaped (thin) hands.

-- G --

Guilloche / Guilloché --
(fr) Adornment or decoration in the form of curved lines intersecting or entwined.  Frequently used on wristwatch faces.  For wristwatches, these are engraved on the watch face by a guilloché machine (also called a geometric lathe, a rose machine, an engine-turner, or a cycloidal engine), a machine with many gears and settings that can produce many different patterns.

Jay Paz & Co.

-- H --

Hallmark --
A Hallmark is a mark or stamp on an item indicating the purity of the metal, or the date, the maker, and/or the country of origin.

Hands --
The hands are the hours hand, the minutes hand, and the seconds hand, which indicate the time.

Haute --
(fr) High, great.

Horloge / (sometimes Horologe) --
(fr) A watch or clock.

Horlogere / Horlogère --
(fr) Pertaining to the watch industry.

Horlogerie --
(fr) Watch industry.

Horologer --
A maker or dealer in timepieces.  An expert in horology.

Horological --
Pertaining to horology or to a horloge.

Horologiographer --
A maker of timepieces, dials, movements.

Horologiography --
The art of making timepieces.

Horologist --
A maker or dealer in timepieces.  An expert in horology.

Horology --
The science and art of the principles and construction of measuring and indicating portions of time, as in clocks and watches..

Horometer --
A device for measuring time.

-- I --

-- J --

-- K --

-- L --

Links --
A number of links make up the bracelet.  Links can be added or removed to fit to one's wrist.

Lugs --
Lugs are the two pair of protrusions at the top and bottom of the case which allow the attachment of the bracelet or watch band (watchband).

-- M --

Mainspring --
The mainspring is the power spring of a wristwatch.  It stores the energy input into it by manual winding or by the rotor in an automatic (self-winding) watch.  That energy is then used to put into motion the gear trains of the movement.

Minute Repeater --
Minute Repeaters chime the hours, quarters, and minutes whenever the repeater button is pushed.  One note is struck for each hour, another note for the quarter hours, and a third note for each minute past the last quarter hour.  This requires a very sophisticated complication to keep track of how many of each of the notes to strike at any particular time.

Moon Phases --
Moon Phases is a horological complication.

Movement --
The movement is the complete finished mechanical assembly that goes inside the watch case, not including the case itself, or the dial.  Compare to ébauche and caliber.

-- N --

-- O --

-- P --

Perpetual Calendar --
A perpetual calendar keeps track of the date, the day of the week, the month, the year, including leap years, and sometimes even the century.  Because of the complex rules of the Gregorian calendar, which include varying lengths of months and leap years every four years, a perpetual calendar is an extraordinary exercise in the design and manufacture of this complication.

Perpetual Movement --
Perpetual Movement is another term for an automatic or self-winding movement.

Power Reserve --
The Power Reserve is also known as the "Réserve de Marche", and is an indicator that displays the approximate number of hours or days remaining until the watch has to be rewound.  The Power Reserve is a very useful horological complication, as it lets the wearer know whether a watch is wound before putting it on.  This is applies particulary to automatics, where the state of the wind is unknown, or to those manually wound watches that may have a power reserve of up to 8 or 10 days or so.

-- Q --

Quick Set --
Quick Set is a feature allows the date to be rapidly set with the winding crown, so the hours hand doesn't have to be moved past the 12 o'clock position.

-- R --

Ratchet-Wheel --
The ratchet wheel is a toothed wheel that is permitted to rotate in one direction only, as part of the winding mechanism.  This unidirectional movement is enforced by other parts, called the "click" and the "click spring". 

Rattrapante Mechanism --
See Double Chronograph.

Regulator --
A regulator time-piece has separate dials for hours, minutes, and seconds.  This enables the time to be read as accurately as possible.

Réserve de Marche --
See Power Reserve.

Rotor --
A rotor is the essential part of an automatic (self-winding) wristwatch.  It is usually a metal half-disc, weighted at the edge, which spins whenever the wearer moves his arm.  This rotarty motion is then geared down to wind the mainspring.

-- S --

Skeleton Horns --
Skeleton Horns.

Spring Bar --
The Spring Bar is a push-pin that holds the bracelet together.

Sweeping Movement --
The Sweeping Movement, also often called a "sweep-second hand" movement, is a movement which advances the seconds hand five to eight times per second or so, thus giving the illusion of continous movement.

-- T --

Tachymeter / Tachymetre --
Tachymeter / Tachymetre.

Tachymetric Scale --
Tachymetric Scale.

Telemeter / Telemetre --
Telemeter / Telemetre.

Telemetric Scale --
Telemetric.

Totalizer --
Totalizer.

Tourbillon --
Tourbillon (french, "whirlwind" or "vortex") is not technically a horological complication, but is frequently included in listings of complications.

A tourbillon is a type of mechanical clock or watch escapement that is designed to counter the effects of gravity and other perturbing forces that can affect the accuracy of a chronometer.  This is accomplished by mounting the escapement in a rotating frame, so that the effect of gravity cancels out when the escapement is rotated 180°.  The effects of gravity were particularly problematic when pocketwatches were carried in the same vertical pocketed position for most of the day, then laid flat for the night.  That variation in orientation caused gravity to act on the parts differently, affecting accuracy.  In a tourbillon, the entire escapement assembly rotates, including the balance wheel, escapement wheel, and pallet fork.  That constant rotation served to counteract the effects of gravity on pocket watches, and now on wristwatches.  The rate of rotation varies per design but has generally become standardized at one rotation per minute.    Tourbillon (Wikipedia).

-- U --

-- V --

-- W --

-- X --

-- Y --

-- Z --

Do you have any suggestions?  Any terms you would like to see added to the wristwatches glossary?  Go to the Contact Page page to send me your suggestions.

A. Lange & Sohne

Bell & Ross

Breguet

Breitling

Bulgari

Carl F. Bucherer

Cartier

Chopard

Christopher Ward

Ebel

Giantto

Glashutte

continued below...

IWC Schaffhausen

Jay Paz & Co.

Montblanc

Roger Dubuis

Rolex

Stauer

TAG Heuer

Ulysse Nardin

Vacheron Constantin

Zenith

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