The action of driving or pushing forward, especially the force that moves a vehicle or projectile.
From Latin propulsio, from propellere meaning 'to drive forward' (pro- 'forward' + pellere 'to drive or push'). The term entered English in the 17th century, initially used in physics and mechanics.
The concept of propulsion fascinated Leonardo da Vinci, who sketched various propulsion mechanisms centuries before they became practical. Jet propulsion, which seems so modern, actually works on Newton's third law discovered in the 1600s—the same principle that makes a balloon fly around a room when you let it go.
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