See Also: top gear(dictionary)
low gear(dictionary)
first gear(dictionary)
gear(encyclopedia)
gear(dictionary)
gear(medicine)
differential gear(dictionary)
differential gear(encyclopedia)
gear 1, noun(dictionary)
gear 2, verb(dictionary)

gear (iou)



gear noun & verb. Also geer. ME.

A. noun.
I. Equipment.
collect. sing. Items of personal wear; apparel, attire, esp. (colloq.) for young people. ME.
Wordsworth Peasants in their homely gear. Daily Mail Prince William..starts new fashions in toddler gear.
b. In pl. Habits, manners. Only in ME.
Armour, arms, equipment for battle. arch. ME.
Carlyle Of serviceable fighting-gear small stock.
a. Harness for draught animals. Formerly usu. in pl. ME.
S. Johnson She rises before the sun to order the horses to their geers.
b. Accoutrements of a riding horse, or of the rider. Freq. with specifying word. LME.
J. Yeats The Egyptians were skilful manufacturers of riding gear.
II. Apparatus.
Apparatus for a specified activity; appliances, implements, tackle, tools. ME.
b. A set of heddles. E16-M19.
A combination of wheels, levers, and other mechanical appliances usu. for a given purpose; esp. the appliances or furnishings connected with the acting portions of any piece of mechanism. Freq. preceded by defining word. E16.
A. S. Neill Another tried to put my lathe in screw-cutting gear when it was running.
b. Wheels working upon one another by means of teeth etc. E19.
c. In full landing-gear. The undercarriage of an aircraft. E20.
Nautical. Rigging. M17.
The arrangements connecting a motor or engine with its work. E19.
in gear connected with the motor, working (lit. & fig.). out of gear with the connection with the motor interrupted or not working; fig. out of order.
b. Any of the several sets of gearwheels in a motor vehicle, bicycle, etc., which can be used to alter the relation between the speed of the driving mechanism and of the driven part. Also, the particular state of adjustment of this relation. L19.
bottom gear: see BOTTOM adjective. change gear engage a different gear in a vehicle. differential gear: see DIFFERENTIAL adjective 4. FIRST gear. high gear: see HIGH adjective. low gear: see LOW adjective. reverse gear: see REVERSE adjective. top gear: see TOP adjective.
J. Gardner The grind of gears came, meaning he was halfway up the hill. fig.: New Statesman If Labour is to win the next election..there now has to be a shift into a different gear.
III. Stuff.
Goods, movable property, household utensils. LME.
b. Objects of a specified kind. LME-E19.
c. Possessions in general, wealth, money. Scot. & north. M16.
a. Discourse, doctrine, talk; derog. 'stuff', nonsense. Long arch. & dial. LME.
K. Hulme The gear he spoke of is three suitcases and a forlorn carton of books.
b. Doings, 'goings on'. Now arch. & dial. LME.
A. S. Swan That foolish, misguided sister of yours has married an old man for his gear!
c. A matter, an affair, a business. obsolete exc. dial. M16.
A material substance or stuff; derog. rubbish. obsolete exc. dial. L15.
Dryden Priests with prayers and other godly gear.
b. Corrupt matter, pus. M16-M17.
E. L. Linton We shall have such fun!..It will be good gear, I can tell you!
Comb.: gearbox, gearcase (a box, case enclosing) the gearing of a motor vehicle etc.; gear-change (a) the action or an act of engaging a different gear in a vehicle; (b) US a gear lever; gearhead N. Amer. colloq. an enthusiast for cars or motor vehicles; gear lever a lever employed to engage or change gear; gear-shift N. Amer. a gear lever; gearwheel a cog wheel, esp. one such in a bicycle which is driven directly by the pedals.
b. verb.
verb trans. Adorn; array; dress. ME-L17.
verb trans. Equip. arch. LME.
verb trans. Harness (a draught animal). Also foll. by up. M17.
a. verb intrans. Be in gear, work smoothly with. M18.
b. verb trans. Put (machinery) into gear; connect, link (as if) by gearing. M19.
fig.: Spectator An entire [ballet] production geared to the Bolshoi interpretation.
With adverbs in specialized senses: gear down provide with a low gear, put into a lower gear. gear up (a) provide with a high gear, put into a higher gear; (b) set in readiness, prepare (usu. in pass.); (c) equip oneself, get ready.
geared adjective (a) equipped, armed; (b) having or provided with gears; (c) Finance having (high, low) gearing (GEARING noun 4): L15.
gearless adjective L19.