engine

[en-juhn]

noun

1. a machine for converting thermal energy into mechanical energy or power to produce force and motion.

2. a railroad locomotive.

3. a fire engine.

4. Computers.,  a piece or collection of software that drives a later process (used in combination, as in ).

5. any mechanical contrivance.

6. a machine or instrument used in warfare, as a battering ram, catapult, or piece of artillery.

7. a means by which something is achieved, accomplished, or furthered.

   Trade is an engine of growth that creates jobs, reduces poverty, and increases economic opportunity.

8. Obsolete.,  an instrument of torture, especially the rack.

engine

/ ˈɛndʒɪn /

noun

1. any machine designed to convert energy, esp heat energy, into mechanical work

   a steam engine

   a petrol engine

2. 1. a railway locomotive

   2. ( as modifier )

      the engine cab

3. military any of various pieces of equipment formerly used in warfare, such as a battering ram or gun

4. obsolete,  any instrument or device

   engines of torture

engine

1. A machine that turns energy into mechanical force or motion, especially one that gets its energy from a source of heat, such as the burning of a fuel. The efficiency of an engine is the ratio between the kinetic energy produced by the machine and the energy needed to produce it.

2. See more at internal-combustion engine steam engine See also motor

Other Word Forms

• engineless adjective
• multiengine noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of engine¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English engin, from Anglo-French, Old French engign, enging, from Latin ingenium “nature, innate quality, mental power, clever invention,” equivalent to in- “in” + -genium (equivalent to gen- “begetting” + -ium noun suffix); in- ², kin, -ium

Word History and Origins

Origin of engine¹

C13: from Old French engin, from Latin ingenium nature, talent, ingenious contrivance, from _in- ² + -genium, related to gignere to beget, produce

Example Sentences

The numbers suggest the building's immigration courts and offices are a primary engine of the administration's deportation plans in America's biggest city.

Read more on BBC

The U.S. also has leverage over China because it produces chips needed for artificial-intelligence processing and industrial products like jet engines—things Beijing has yet to master.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Gas turbines—essentially landlocked jet engines that generate power—are in hot demand as a way to provide reliable electricity, especially for power-hungry data centers.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The legislation aims to curb Big Tech’s market dominance, and benefit businesses that rely on their search engines and app stores to make money.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Porsche has cut guidance several times this year, warning of hits from U.S. import tariffs, investments in new combustion engines and hybrid models amid the slow uptake of EVs and fierce competition in China.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• appliance 
• diesel 
• generator 
• instrument 
• motor 
• power plant 
• tool 
• transformer 
• turbine 
• weapon