racer

[ rey-ser ]

/ ˈreɪ sər /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR racer ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a person, animal, or thing that races or takes part in a race, as a racehorse, bicycle, yacht, etc.

anything having great speed.

racing skate.

a turntable on which a heavy gun is turned.

any of several slender, active snakes of the genera Coluber and Masticophis.

RELATED WORDS

runner, sprinter, marathoner

Nearby words

racemize, racemose, racemose aneurysm, racemous, racemously, racer, racerunner, races, racetrack, racetracker, raceway

Origin of racer

First recorded in 1640–50; race¹ + -er¹

Related formsmin·i·rac·er, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for racer

Teams generally race in a relay format with one racer always on the road.
Pippa Middleton To Cycle Across America ... Starting Tomorrow|Tom Sykes|June 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Teams may put more than one racer on the road at a time if they feel it will be advantageous.
Pippa Middleton To Cycle Across America ... Starting Tomorrow|Tom Sykes|June 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Tension was high in Maranello, Italy, where Schumacher brought Ferrari to the podium in F1 racing more than any other racer.
Formula 1 Champion Michael Schumacher In Coma After Ski Accident|Barbie Latza Nadeau|December 30, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Only then would a racer likely get a chance at a World Cup berth, from the very back of the start list.
Skiing Prodigy Mikaela Shiffrin Looks Ahead to Sochi|Jake Bright|December 1, 2013|DAILY BEAST

One mistake could injure not just the racer but his competitors, as well.
Can NASCAR Driver Trevor Bayne Race Safely With Multiple Sclerosis?|Kent Sepkowitz|November 13, 2013|DAILY BEAST
She was but a moderate success as a racer, but was a very good cruiser, having made a voyage to the West Indies.
Yachting Vol. 2|Various.
The little Zanthe could walk away from her like a racer from a plough horse.
The Three Brides, Love in a Cottage, and Other Tales|Francis A. Durivage
It was a government boat, and was in good repute as a racer in and about Manila, in spite of its blunt bow and wide beam.
Boy Scouts in the Philippines|G. Harvey Ralphson
In the course of my live-trapping, I occasionally found more than one racer in a trap.
Natural History of the Racer Coluber constrictor|Henry S. Fitch
She walked with a raking grace which became her as wings become a bird or a long swinging stride a racer.
Peter and Jane|S. (Sarah) Macnaughtan

British Dictionary definitions for racer

racer

/ (ˈreɪsə) /

noun

a person, animal, or machine that races

a turntable used to traverse a heavy gun

any of several long slender nonvenomous North American snakes of the colubrid genus Coluber and related genera, such as C. lateralis (striped racer)

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

Word Origin and History for racer

racer

1640s of persons; 1793 of vehicles, agent noun from race (v.).