motor

[ moh-ter ]

/ ˈmoʊ tər /

noun

a comparatively small and powerful engine, especially an internal-combustion engine in an automobile, motorboat, or the like.

any self-powered vehicle.

a person or thing that imparts motion, especially a contrivance, as a steam engine, that receives and modifies energy from some natural source in order to utilize it in driving machinery.

Also called electric motor. Electricity. a machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy, as an induction motor.

motors, stocks or bonds in automobile companies.

adjective

pertaining to or operated by a motor.

of, for, by, or pertaining to motor vehicles: motor freight.

designed or for automobiles, their drivers, or their passengers: The hotel has a motor lobby in its parking garage for picking up and discharging passengers.

causing or producing motion.

Physiology. conveying an impulse that results or tends to result in motion, as a nerve.

Psychology, Physiology. Also motoric. of, relating to, or involving muscular movement: a motor response; motor images.

verb (used without object)

to ride or travel in an automobile; drive: They motored up the coast.

verb (used with object)

Chiefly British. to drive or transport by car: He motored his son to school.

Origin of motor

1580–90; < Latin mōtor mover, equivalent to mō- (variant stem of movēre to move) + -tor -tor

OTHER WORDS FROM motor

mul·ti·mo·tor, noun

Words nearby motor

moto perpetuo, motocross, motofacient, moton, motoneuron, motor, motor area, motor ataxia, motor camp, motor caravan, motor cortex

Example sentences from the Web for motor

They can hear the sound of his boat's motor, growing louder as it comes over the horizon.

Alfred Hitchcock’s Fade to Black: The Great Director’s Final Days |David Freeman |December 13, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
The turbulent waters caused one of his oars to crack, which—without a motor or a sail—can be severely detrimental to his voyage.

Victor Mooney’s Epic Adventure for His Dead Brother |Justin Jones |October 19, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
He was initially with a group that traveled by motor vehicles, but has spent the past two decades with a horse at his helm.

London’s Pagan Counterculture Kings |Justin Jones |October 12, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
But if the outness of LGBT Americans is indeed the motor for social change, then there is certainly still cause for concern.

Now Is the Time to Come Out |Samantha Allen |October 11, 2014 |DAILY BEAST

“I would build a motor car for the great multitude,” he said.

From the Model T to the Model S |The Daily Beast |September 24, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
How the motor roared as our hero jerked his levers back into their old position.

The Hero of Panama |F. S. Brereton
But for the accident to the motor they would not have dreamed of making a landing short of the aviation field at Bar-le-Duc.

Air Service Boys Over The Enemy's Lines |Charles Amory Beach
The motor was started and the machinery began to hum and throb.

Tom Swift and his Wireless Message |Victor Appleton
They are used in practically all the work for which gas engines are employed, including automobiles, motor boats, and aeroplanes.

The Boy's Book of New Inventions |Harry E. Maule
A motor rushed past her, covering her with dust and causing her to clench her hands in anger.

The Halo |Bettina von Hutten

British Dictionary definitions for motor

motor

/ (ˈməʊtə) /

noun

the engine, esp an internal-combustion engine, of a vehicle
(as modifier)a motor scooter

Also called: electric motor a machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy by means of the forces exerted on a current-carrying coil placed in a magnetic field

any device that converts another form of energy into mechanical energy to produce motion

an indispensable part or player that moves a process or system along

mainly British a car or other motor vehicle
as modifiermotor spares

adjective

producing or causing motion

physiol

of or relating to nerves or neurons that carry impulses that cause muscles to contract
of or relating to movement or to muscles that induce movement

verb

(intr) to travel by car

(tr) British to transport by car

(intr) informal to move fast; make good progress

(tr) to motivate

Word Origin for motor

C16: from Latin mōtor a mover, from movēre to move

Medical definitions for motor

motor

[ mō′tər ]

adj.

Causing or producing motion.

Of or being nerves that carry impulses from the nerve centers to the muscles.

Involving or relating to movements of the muscles.

Of or relating to an organism's overt reaction to a stimulus.

Scientific definitions for motor

motor

[ mō′tər ]

Noun

A machine that uses energy, such as electric or chemical energy (as from burning a fuel), to produce mechanical motion. See also engine.

Adjective

Involving the muscles or the nerves that are connected to them. Compare sensory.

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

motor

noun

adjective

verb (used without object)

verb (used with object)

Origin of motor

OTHER WORDS FROM motor

Words nearby motor

Example sentences from the Web for motor

British Dictionary definitions for motor

noun

adjective

verb

Word Origin for motor

Medical definitions for motor

adj.

Scientific definitions for motor

Noun

Adjective

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

motor

noun

adjective

verb (used without object)

verb (used with object)

Origin of motor

OTHER WORDS FROM motor

Words nearby motor

Words related to motor

Example sentences from the Web for motor

(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []) .push({}); British Dictionary definitions for motor

noun

adjective

verb

Word Origin for motor

Medical definitions for motor

adj.

Scientific definitions for motor

Noun

Adjective

British Dictionary definitions for motor