PROPEL', verb transitive [Latin propello; pro, forward, and pello, to drive.] To drive forward; to urge or press onward by force. The wind or steam propels ships; balls are propelled by the force of gun-powder; mill wheels are propelled by water or steam; the blood is propelled through the arteries and veins by the action of the heart. [This word is commonly applied to material bodies.]
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI