[ noun ] a hinged catch that fits into a notch of a ratchet to move a wheel forward or prevent it from moving backward <noun.artifact>
Pawl \Pawl\, v. t. To stop with a pawl; to drop the pawls off.
{To pawl the capstan}. See under {Capstan}.
Pawl \Pawl\, n. [W. pawl a pole, a stake. Cf. {Pole} a stake.] (Mach.) A pivoted tongue, or sliding bolt, on one part of a machine, adapted to fall into notches, or interdental spaces, on another part, as a ratchet wheel, in such a manner as to permit motion in one direction and prevent it in the reverse, as in a windlass; a catch, click, or detent. See Illust. of {Ratchet Wheel}. [Written also {paul}, or {pall}.]
{Pawl bitt} (Naut.), a heavy timber, set abaft the windlass, to receive the strain of the pawls.
{Pawl rim} or {Pawl ring} (Naut.), a stationary metallic ring surrounding the base of a capstan, having notches for the pawls to catch in.