A device that controls the flow of liquids or gases by opening, closing, or partially obstructing a passage.
From Latin 'valva' meaning the leaf of a folding door. Romans noticed that double doors opened and closed like the shells of clams, so they used the same word for both. When engineers needed to describe mechanical flow-control devices, they borrowed this door terminology because valves open and shut passages just like doors!
Every valve in your house — from your heart to your plumbing — gets its name from Roman folding doors. Ancient Romans thought double doors looked like clamshells opening and closing, and centuries later, engineers borrowed this door vocabulary to describe anything that opens and shuts to control flow!
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