cog railway

American

noun

a railroad having locomotives with a cogged center driving wheel engaging with a cogged rail, to provide sufficient traction for climbing steeper grades than is possible with ordinary wheels.

cog railway British

/ ˈkɒɡˌweɪ /

noun

other terms for rack railway

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of cog railway

An Americanism dating back to 1895–1900

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The owners of the cog railway that runs up the mountain want to build the hotel.

From Washington Times • Dec. 4, 2016

Rather like the Jungfraubahn cog railway, which misses the best of the scenery by making much of its steep ascent to the peak underground, the show doesn't always showcase its subject matter perfectly.

From The Guardian • Nov. 29, 2012

Operators of a famous cog railway that carries tourists up to Pikes Peak said the trains would remain shut down on Tuesday for a third straight day.

From Reuters • Jun. 27, 2012

Then in 1869 a local entrepreneur named Sylvester March built the cog railway, the first in the world.

From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson

At seven o'clock the next morning I boarded the train for Damascus, ninety-one miles distant, and we were soon climbing the western slope of the Lebanon Mountains by a cog railway.

From A Trip Abroad by Janes, Don Carlos

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023