Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

Detent

Detent , noun

[French détente, from détendre to unbend, relax; pref. dé- (Latin dis- or de) + tendre to stretch. See Distend.]

(Mechanics) That which locks or unlocks a movement; a catch, pawl, or dog; especially, in clockwork, the catch which locks and unlocks the wheelwork in striking.