Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Connect \Con*nect"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Connected}; p. pr. &
   vb. n. {Connecting}>.] [L. connectere, -nexum; con- + nectere
   to bind. See {Annex}.]
   1. To join, or fasten together, as by something intervening;
      to associate; to combine; to unite or link together; to
      establish a bond or relation between.

            He fills, he bounds, connects and equals all.
                                                  --Pope.

            A man must see the connection of each intermediate
            idea with those that it connects before he can use
            it in a syllogism.                    --Locke.

   2. To associate (a person or thing, or one's self) with
      another person, thing, business, or affair.

   {Connecting rod} (Mach.), a rod or bar joined to, and
      connecting, two or more moving parts; esp. a rod
      connecting a crank wrist with a beam, crosshead, piston
      rod, or piston, as in a steam engine.

Source : WordNet®

connecting rod
     n : a rod that transmits motion (especially one that connects a
         rotating wheel to a reciprocating shaft)