WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

Coriolis force
    n 1: (physics) a force due to the earth's rotation; acts on a
         body in motion (airplane or projectile) in a rotating
         reference frame; in a rotating frame of reference Newton's
         second law of motion can be made to apply if in addition to
         the real forces acting on a body a Coriolis force and a
         centrifugal force are introduced