top gear

American

[top geer] / ˈtɒp ˈgɪər /

noun

the position or arrangement of parts in an automobile’s transmission that allows for the greatest speed and efficiency; the highest available gear in an automobile.

The automatic transmission has six speeds, enough to furnish fast, serene cruising in top gear.

idioms

in / into top gear. gear.

top gear British

noun

Often shortened to: top. the highest gear in a motor vehicle

"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

Etymology

Origin of top gear

First recorded in 1900–05

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:

top gear

The most daring, the most violent, the "person in the top gear", as one 23-year-old put it, has a chance -- albeit slim -- of rising through the ranks.

From Barron's ● Jul. 13, 2026

On the field, he wants England playing one of the world’s slowest sports in top gear all the time.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 21, 2025

The lineup also remained far from top gear.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 25, 2024

Neither Humphries nor Aspinall hit top gear in the final, but it was the world number one who came through to create a two-point gap at the top of the table.

From BBC ● Mar. 14, 2024

The BFG changed into his famous top gear and all at once he began to fly forward as though there were springs in his legs and rockets in his toes.

From "The BFG" by Roald Dahl

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023