gear

American  

[geer] / gɪər /

noun

• gears
  plural

1. Machinery.

   1. a part, as a disk, wheel, or section of a shaft, having cut teeth of such form, size, and spacing that they mesh with teeth in another part to transmit or receive force and motion.

   2. an assembly of such parts.

   3. one of several possible arrangements of such parts in a mechanism, as an automobile transmission, for affording different relations of torque and speed between the driving and the driven machinery, or for permitting the driven machinery to run in either direction.

      first gear;

      reverse gear.

   4. a mechanism or group of parts performing one function or serving one purpose in a complex machine.

      steering gear.

2. implements, tools, or apparatus, especially as used for a particular occupation or activity; paraphernalia.

   fishing gear.

   Synonyms:

   rig, tackle, outfit, equipment

3. a harness, especially of horses.

4. Nautical.

   1. the lines, tackles, etc., of a particular sail or spar.

   2. the personal tools, clothing, and other possessions of a sailor.

5. portable items of personal property, including clothing; possessions.

   The campers keep all their gear in footlockers.

6. wearing apparel; clothing.

   The fashion pages of the Sunday paper are featuring the latest fall gear.

7. armor or arms.

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verb (used with object)

• gears,
  present (3rd person singular)
• geared,
  past participle,  past
• gearing
  present participle

1. to provide with or connect by gearing.

2. to put in or into gear.

3. to provide with gear; supply; equip.

4. to prepare, adjust, or adapt to a particular situation, person, etc., in order to bring about satisfactory results.

   The producers geared their output to seasonal demands.

verb (used without object)

• gears,
  present (3rd person singular)
• geared,
  past participle,  past
• gearing
  present participle

1. to fit exactly, as one part of gearing into another; come into or be in gear.

adjective

1. Slang. great; wonderful.

verb phrase

1. gear up

   1. to make or get ready for a future event or situation.

      Insiders say the senator is gearing up to run for governor.

   2. to get or put on equipment or clothing for a particular purpose.

      The hikers geared up for the long trek down the mountain.

   3. to arouse or excite, as with enthusiasm or expectation.

      The employees were geared up for a hard battle with management over working hours.

2. gear down

   1. Automotive. to shift the transmission of a vehicle to a lower gear.

      The truck driver geared down at the top of the hill.

   2. to reduce in scope or intensity.

      With less income you'll have to gear down your spending habits.

idioms

1. in / into high gear, in or into a state of utmost speed, activity, or efficiency: null ininto top gear

   With cold and flu season in high gear, it's time to perfect your chicken soup recipe.

   Military rearmament moved into high gear.

2. shift / switch gears, to change one's attitude, course of action, methods, etc., in an abrupt, dramatic, or unexpected manner.

   In the middle of the second act the play shifts gears from comedy to tragedy.

3. out of gear, in the state in which gears are not connected or meshed.

   The engine is out of gear.

4. in gear,

   1. Machinery. in the state in which gears are connected or meshed.

      The car is in gear.

   2. in proper or active working order; functioning continuously without trouble.

      Every department in this company must be in gear at all times.

gear British  

/ ɡɪə /

noun

1. a toothed wheel that engages with another toothed wheel or with a rack in order to change the speed or direction of transmitted motion

2. a mechanism for transmitting motion by gears, esp for a specific purpose

   the steering gear of a boat

3. the engagement or specific ratio of a system of gears

   in gear

   high gear

4. personal equipment and accoutrements; belongings

5. equipment and supplies for a particular operation, sport, etc

   fishing gear

6. nautical all equipment or appurtenances belonging to a certain vessel, sailor, etc

7. short for landing gear

8. informal up-to-date clothes and accessories, esp those bought by young people

9. slang

   1. stolen goods

   2. illegal drugs

10. a less common word for harness

11. working or performing effectively or properly

12. out of order; not functioning properly

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verb

1. (tr) to adjust or adapt (one thing) so as to fit in or work with another

   to gear our output to current demand

2. (tr) to equip with or connect by gears

3. (intr) to be in or come into gear

4. (tr) to equip with harness

gear Scientific  

/ gîr /

1. A wheel with teeth around its rim that mesh with the teeth of another wheel to transmit motion. Gears are used to transmit power (as in a car transmission) or change the direction of motion in a mechanism (as in a differential axle). Fixed ratios of speed in various parts of a machine is often established by the arrangement of gears.

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gear More Idioms  

1. see high gear; slip a cog (gear).

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• regear
  verb
• gearless
  adjective
• ungeared
  adjective
• well-geared
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• gears
  plural

Participles

• gearing
  present
• geared
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• gear
  simple
• gears
  simple
• have geared
  perfect
• has geared
  perfect
• am gearing
  progressive
• are gearing
  progressive
• is gearing
  progressive
• have been gearing
  perfect progressive
• has been gearing
  perfect progressive

Past

• geared
  simple
• had geared
  perfect
• was gearing
  progressive
• were gearing
  progressive
• had been gearing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will gear
  simple
• will have geared
  perfect
• will be gearing
  progressive
• will have been gearing
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of gear

First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English gere, from Old Norse gervi, gørvi; akin to Old English gearwe “equipment”

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Explanation

The noun gear refers to several things. First, it’s the equipment we need for a sport or event. A gear is also a wheel with teeth that interlocks with another gear to transmit motion in a machine. The background of gear as "equipment" dates back to around 1200 and comes from the Old Norse gervi, "apparel." The word gear in machinery became common in the early 19th century, although there is evidence that the word came to mean "toothed wheel" as early as 1520. Gear entered English slang around 1951, meaning something stylish. This use was popularized in the 1960s, under the influence of British pop music.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

gear gears geared gearing

But Australia struck in the sixth minute through lock Olivia Kernick following prop Makenzie Weale's terrific offload out the back, and the Jillaroos then clicked into gear.

From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2026

Transport companies are also noticing a shift in gear.

From Barron's ● Oct. 30, 2026

At the Paris protest on Saturday, a row of police in riot gear led the crowd along the authorized route down boulevards on the city’s outskirts.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2026

But for Muse to pay a meaningful chunk of Meta’s AI bills, its growth and monetization would need to kick into a different gear.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026

Control room operators at Daiichi were wearing full gear, but the airtight radiation suits weren’t made for long-term use.

From "Meltdown" by Deirdre Langeland

England were scoreless for the first 22 minutes against Laurent Frayssinous' side but went through the gears in the second period to record their biggest-ever margin of victory over France.

From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026

OK, let’s shift gears from international relations to something closer to home—like what else you should be reading this evening:

From Slate ● Oct. 26, 2026

It’s a key week for tech stocks as Nvidia gears up for a European conference and Meta prepares to report earnings.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2026

In doing so, the RBI shifted gears to join several central banks around the world who have raised rates to curb price rises or boost their currencies.

From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026

If Leo had had gears and wires in his brain, they would’ve short-circuited.

From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan

It’s easy to dismiss “The Devils” as a rerelease geared toward older cinephiles.

From Salon ● Oct. 22, 2026

The show grew out of the animated “Vampirina” TV series, which was geared toward younger kids.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026

Analysts and executives say that has contributed to a widened gap between luxury brands geared toward the ultrarich, and those that cater to everyone else.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026

But she said that faster growth had occurred in offerings geared toward international cuisine, fiber and protein, smaller package sizes and bigger family-sized packs.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 2, 2026

It was all geared toward the easing of pain.

From "Invisible Man" by Ralph Ellison

Asian stocks slipped Monday as the dour mood that sullied last week's trading continued, with investors gearing up for a crucial run of central bank decisions and tech earnings.

From Barron's ● Oct. 26, 2026

Newport Beach has declared a local emergency ahead of the tides and activated its emergency operations center, gearing up for flood prevention and response efforts.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 24, 2026

Kao told agents he was gearing up to make more significant donations to Graham, Clyburn and Wilson by the end of the year.

From Salon ● Oct. 20, 2026

Anthropic has sought to mend fences with the administration recently and is gearing up for an initial public offering it hopes will value the company at some $2 trillion.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026

The problem for Kepler was that circles, eccentrics and epicycles were geometrical constructions; there was no evidence that any such gearing existed in the heavens.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

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Related Words

• accessory
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• harness
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• material
• paraphernalia
• stuff
• supply

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