motor

American  

[moh-ter] / ˈmoʊ tər /

noun

• motors
  plural

1. a comparatively small and powerful engine, especially an internal-combustion engine in an automobile, motorboat, or the like.

2. any self-powered vehicle.

3. a person or thing that imparts motion, especially a contrivance, as a steam engine, that receives and modifies energy from some natural source in order to utilize it in driving machinery.

4. Also called electric motor. Electricity. a machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy, as an induction motor.

5. motors, stocks or bonds in automobile companies.

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adjective

1. pertaining to or operated by a motor.

2. of, for, by, or pertaining to motor vehicles.

   motor freight.

3. designed or for automobiles, their drivers, or their passengers.

   The hotel has a motor lobby in its parking garage for picking up and discharging passengers.

4. causing or producing motion.

5. Physiology. conveying an impulse that results or tends to result in motion, as a nerve.

6. Psychology, Physiology. Also of, relating to, or involving muscular movement.

   a motor response; motor images.

verb (used without object)

• motors,
  present (3rd person singular)
• motored,
  past participle,  past
• motoring
  present participle

1. to ride or travel in an automobile; drive.

   They motored up the coast.

verb (used with object)

• motors,
  present (3rd person singular)
• motored,
  past participle,  past
• motoring
  present participle

1. Chiefly British. to drive or transport by car.

   He motored his son to school.

motor British  

/ ˈməʊtə /

noun

1. 1. the engine, esp an internal-combustion engine, of a vehicle

   2. ( as modifier )

      a motor scooter

2. Also called: electric motor. a machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy by means of the forces exerted on a current-carrying coil placed in a magnetic field

3. any device that converts another form of energy into mechanical energy to produce motion

4. an indispensable part or player that moves a process or system along

5. 1. a car or other motor vehicle

   2. as modifier

      motor spares

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adjective

1. producing or causing motion

2. physiol

   1. of or relating to nerves or neurons that carry impulses that cause muscles to contract

   2. of or relating to movement or to muscles that induce movement

verb

1. (intr) to travel by car

2. (tr) to transport by car

3. informal (intr) to move fast; make good progress

4. (tr) to motivate

motor Scientific  

/ mō′tər /

1. A machine that uses energy, such as electric or chemical energy (as from burning a fuel), to produce mechanical motion.

2. See also engine

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1. Involving the muscles or the nerves that are connected to them.

2. Compare sensory

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• multimotor
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• motors
  plural

Participles

• motoring
  present
• motored
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• motor
  simple
• motors
  simple
• have motored
  perfect
• has motored
  perfect
• am motoring
  progressive
• are motoring
  progressive
• is motoring
  progressive
• have been motoring
  perfect progressive
• has been motoring
  perfect progressive

Past

• motored
  simple
• had motored
  perfect
• was motoring
  progressive
• were motoring
  progressive
• had been motoring
  perfect progressive

Future

• will motor
  simple
• will have motored
  perfect
• will be motoring
  progressive
• will have been motoring
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of motor

1580–90; < Latin mōtor mover, equivalent to mō- (variant stem of movēre to move ) + -tor -tor

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Explanation

A motor runs your car, whizzes the blender and gets your golf cart going: it's simply a machine that converts energy into motion. Coming to us from a Latin word that means "to move," motor is certainly connected to the world of motion. Without the innovation of Ford motors, most of America wouldn't be able to get anywhere today. These days the motor is undergoing some serious revisions, as engineers look for a way to power things with less gasoline and more sunshine.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

motor motors motored motoring

While several Rwandans told AFP of their pride that their country will soon host the pinnacle of motor sports, Kigali entrepreneur Amon Niyigena, took a more pragmatic view.

From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026

Lindsey has also run several marathons in memory of her late husband, who died in 2024, four and half years after his diagnosis of motor neurone disease.

From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026

The results also indicated that treatment could stabilize motor function, an important outcome for a progressive disorder that can steadily undermine a person's ability to move independently.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 13, 2026

Did the department of motor vehicles take her license?

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 12, 2026

On top, it misses two key sections of the cortex, the motor and somatosensory strips.

From "Phineas Gage" by John Fleischman

The new model's electric motors produce about 1,000 horsepower, allowing it to accelerate from 0-62mph in 3.2 seconds.

From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026

Chief among Jonas’s callouts is China’s control of magnetic rare earths, which are used to make motors that are key to actuation systems.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 2, 2026

The company booked a ¥632 billion impairment loss in its latest fiscal year, citing a deterioration in its electric-vehicle motor business and excessive competition for motors used in household appliances in China, among other reasons.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026

The boxes are packed with GPS tracking devices, electric motors and aircraft engine parts, according to Iranian customs records provided by trade database ImportGenius.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026

Then, a few at a time, we moved the tools and the motors from the Toy Tinker’s truck to the cave.

From "Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH" by Robert C. O'Brien

The U.S. economy has motored along, powered by the artificial-intelligence build-out and a stock-market rally lifting spending among higher-income households.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026

As the boat motored across the sea, Brazilian activist Thiago Avila said other nations should come to Cuba's aid.

From Barron's ● Mar. 24, 2026

Max Jorgensen ate up space down the right, then Joseph Suaalii motored past Bundee Aki to put the Wallabies into dream territory.

From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2025

As the Zodiac motored into the harbor, Dillais carried fishing gear for cover.

From Slate ● Jul. 22, 2025

She started the engine and motored slowly out in the direction of the open water, following the current.

From "Genuine Fraud" by E. Lockhart

The average price of diesel has risen above £2 a litre in the UK for the first time, according to the RAC motoring group.

From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2026

The rest—the models, the step and repeats, the Veuve Clicquot, the British motoring journalists complaining about the size of said sashimi—felt like a solid, traditional 9.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026

However, it stopped short of introducing GDLs, which motoring organisation the AA described as "a missed opportunity".

From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026

Average UK diesel prices have hit a record high, according to the RAC motoring organisation.

From Barron's ● Sep. 29, 2026

He was, he knew, motoring against the grain of boats drifting down the bank.

From "Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel" by David Guterson

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