horsepower

[hawrs-pou-er]

noun

1. a foot-pound-second unit of power, pow, power, equivalent to 550 foot-pounds per second, or 745.7 watts.

2. Informal.,  the capacity to achieve or produce; strength or talent.

   The university's history faculty is noted for its intellectual horsepower.

horsepower

/ ˈhɔːsˌpaʊə /

noun

1. an fps unit of power, equal to 550 foot-pounds per second (equivalent to 745.7 watts)

2. a US standard unit of power, equal to 746 watts

horsepower

1. A unit that is used to measure the power of engines and motors. One unit of horsepower is equal to the power needed to lift 550 pounds one foot in one second. This unit has been widely replaced by the watt in scientific usage; one horsepower is equal to 745.7 watts.

horsepower

1. A unit of power equal to about 746 watts.

The horsepower is used to measure the power of engines.

This term was coined by James Watt, who invented a new type of steam engine in the eighteenth century. Watt found that the horse could do a certain amount of work per second; when he sold his steam engines, this measurement allowed him to estimate the worth of an engine in terms of the number of horses it would replace. Therefore, a six-horsepower engine was capable of replacing six horses.

Word History and Origins

Origin of horsepower¹

First recorded in 1800–10; horse + power

Example Sentences

Please note also that if you want the full measure of horsepower and torque from either engine you have to use premium-grade gasoline.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Nintendo has long prioritized play as an everyone-can-do-it lifestyle rather than pure gaming horsepower, and the Switch 2 is an evolution of that philosophy.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

And France, together with Germany, is traditionally seen as the EU's "motor" in terms of ideological and political horsepower.

Read more on BBC

And as “Senna” itself understands, it’s commerce as much as horsepower that makes the wheels of the sport turn.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

He had too much else to worry about, Newgarden insisted, and helping his boss understand how Newgarden illegally used extra boosts of horsepower to win the March opening race was a bigger priority.

Read more on Seattle Times

Related Words

• dynamism 
• electricity 
• heat 
• potential 
• service 
• strength