engine
Americannoun
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a machine for converting thermal energy into mechanical energy or power to produce force and motion.
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a railroad locomotive.
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a fire engine.
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Computers. a piece or collection of software that drives a later process (used in combination, as in ).
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any mechanical contrivance.
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a machine or instrument used in warfare, as a battering ram, catapult, or piece of artillery.
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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.
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Obsolete. an instrument of torture, especially the rack.
noun
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any machine designed to convert energy, esp heat energy, into mechanical work
a steam engine
a petrol engine
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a railway locomotive
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( as modifier )
the engine cab
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military any of various pieces of equipment formerly used in warfare, such as a battering ram or gun
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obsolete any instrument or device
engines of torture
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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.
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See more at internal-combustion engine steam engine See also motor
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of engine
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); see in- 2, kin, -ium
Explanation
An engine is a machine that burns fuel to make something move. The engine in a car is the motor that makes it go. Engines power vehicles including cars, trains, airplanes, and boats. While these engines tend to be powered by fuel that's burned, other engines get their power from electricity, which they convert to mechanical energy — fans, power tools, and small appliances all commonly have electric engines. Figuratively, you can also use the word engine to mean "something that's used to bring about a specific result." In your state, for example, tourism might be the main engine of job growth.
Vocabulary lists containing engine
Engineering - Introductory
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Mechanical Engineering
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Engineering - Middle School
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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.
See Examples For:
“The young people aren’t afraid, and they are the engine of our democracy,” said Nataliia Shapoval, head of the KSE Institute think tank in Kyiv.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
The next step is the new Honda engine, which will make its race debut at the Dutch Grand Prix after the summer break.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
Why aren’t we talking about Pogacar’s brilliant final day battle up the cobbles of Montmartre against the Dutch steam engine Mathieu van der Poel?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026
Kent estimates that he has rebuilt that truck’s engine about half a dozen times.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 26, 2026
The dog started barking and we heard the hum of an engine.
From "Flying Through Water" by Mamle Wolo
That efficiency squeeze is one of the crucial engines driving the margin forecasts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
The scandal erupted in September 2015 when German automaker Volkswagen admitted fitting millions of vehicles with software to make engines appear less polluting in regulatory tests than in real driving conditions.
From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026
When it tried to relight 13 engines for a landing burn, only some turned on, leading to the booster having a hard splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 27, 2026
Cal Fire had amassed multiple air tankers, one helicopter, 22 fire engines and four bulldozers to support the 225 fire personnel who were fighting the blaze.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026
And then, distant at first but growing louder, the thunder of the engines of American bombers.
From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
