- a device that uses electricity, petrol, etc. to produce movement and makes a machine, a vehicle, a boat, etc. work
- An electric motor is used to pump the water.
- Batteries power the motor.
- He started the motor.
- Diesel engines drive six electric motors.
Extra ExamplesTopics Engineeringb2- A powerful motor drives the mill wheel.
- One of the wheels is fitted with an electric motor.
- An electric current drives motors located under the floor.
- She left the motor running.
- Electricity powers hydraulic motors that compress these bales.
- small motors for toys and clocks
- a circular saw with a fan-cooled motor
- The car has a faulty starter motor.
- When you turn the ignition key, the starter motor spins the engine.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- large
- powerful
- small
- …
- start
- turn on
- turn off
- …
- run
- work
- drive something
- …
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- a source of power, energy or movement
- Consumer spending has been the motor of economic growth.
- Women are often the motors of change in politics and the economy.
- (British English, old-fashioned or humorous) a car
- He uses the motor for local shopping trips.
- I'm so rich now I can buy a shiny new motor!
Extra ExamplesTopics Transport by car or lorryc1- It was his birthday so he drove the motor around Pudong all night.
- Seems funny that my dodgy old motor has become a classic car.
Word Originlate Middle English (denoting a person who imparts motion): from Latin, literally ‘mover’, based on movere ‘to move’. The current sense of the noun dates from the mid 19th cent.
Check pronunciation:
motor