switch engine
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of switch engine
An Americanism dating back to 1865–70
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.
He has also answered calls by rowboat and switch engine.
From Time Magazine Archive
In Ogden, Utah, police investigated a theft from the Union Pacific yards, tracked down and arrested Marlin Lamar Tullis, 27, and a friend, accused them of making off with 116-ton Diesel heavy-duty switch engine.
From Time Magazine Archive
At Philadelphia their cars were attached to a switch engine, shuttled off to Bustleton.
From Time Magazine Archive
Example: a White truck on railroad wheels, now used as a Port Cargill switch engine.
From Time Magazine Archive
"I might as well been pleadin' with a switch engine," he went on.
From "Invisible Man" by Ralph Ellison
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.
