gear

1 of 2

noun

ˈgir 

1

a

: clothing, garments

b

: movable property : goods

2

: equipment, paraphernalia

fishing gear

3

a

: the rigging of a ship or boat

b

: the harness especially of horses

4

dialectal, chiefly British : absurd talk : nonsense

5

dialectal, chiefly British : doings

6

a(1)

: a mechanism that performs a specific function in a complete machine

steering gear

(2)

: a toothed wheel

(3)

: working relation, position, order, or adjustment

got her career in gear

(4)

: a level or pace of functioning

kicked their performance into high gear

b

: one of two or more adjustments of a transmission (as of a bicycle or motor vehicle) that determine mechanical advantage, relative speed, and direction of travel

gearless

ˈgir-ləs 

adjective

Illustration of gear

• G gear 6a(2)

gear

2 of 2

verb

geared; gearing; gears

transitive verb

1

a

: to provide (machinery) with gearing (see gearing sense 2)

b

: to connect by gearing (see gearing sense 1)

2

a

: to make ready for effective operation

b

: to adjust so as to match, blend with, or satisfy something

gearing wages to productivity

intransitive verb

1

a

British, of machinery : to be in gear : mesh

b

: shift sense 1c

gear down

2

: to become adjusted so as to match, blend, or harmonize

The industry is geared to meet growing consumer demand.

Synonyms

Noun

• accoutrements
• accouterments
• apparatus
• equipment
• hardware
• kit [chiefly British]
• material(s)
• matériel
• materiel
• outfit
• paraphernalia
• stuff
• tackle

Examples of gear in a Sentence

Noun

I somehow managed to pack all my gear into one suitcase.

soldiers in full combat gear

a complicated arrangement of gears and shafts

a car with four forward gears

Halfway up the hill, my bike slipped out of gear.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Divers from the New York City Police Department (NYPD) are continuing to search for the helicopter’s main rotor, main gear box, tail rotor and a large portion of the tail boom, NTSB said. —Greg Wehner, FOXNews.com, 14 Apr. 2025

Like all big BMWs, final drive is by shaft and there are six gears to choose from. —William Roberson, Forbes.com, 14 Apr. 2025

Verb

Many posts on social media — many of them geared toward women — promote high protein diets for weight loss. —Alice Callahan, New York Times, 9 Apr. 2025

Some belt drives have internally geared hubs that aren’t meant to be user-serviceable. —Chris Cona, ArsTechnica, 9 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English gere, from Old Norse gervi, gǫrvi; akin to Old English gearwe equipment, clothing, gearu ready — more at yare

Verb

derivative of gear entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1851, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Phrases Containing gear

• arresting gear
• bevel gear
• bottom gear
• change gear
• differential gear
• gear shift
• gear up
• get in gear
• high gear
• hit top gear
• in/into gear
• in/into high gear
• in/into reverse gear
• kicks/moves into high gear
• landing gear
• low gear
• put the car in/into gear
• reduction gear
• reverse gear
• running gear
• spur gear
• steering gear
• top gear
• worm gear

Rhymes for gear

• beer
• bier
• cheer
• clear
• dear
• deer
• drear
• ear
• fear
• fier
• hear
• here

Kids Definition

gear

1 of 2 noun

ˈgi(ə)r 

1

: equipment sense 2

camping gear

electronic gear

2

a

: a mechanism that performs a specific function in a machine

steering gear

b

: a toothed wheel : cogwheel

3

a

: working order, relation, or adjustment

got her career in gear

b

: one of the adjustments of a transmission (as of a bicycle or motor vehicle) that determine the direction of travel and the relative speed of the engine and the vehicle

gearless

-ləs 

adjective

gear

2 of 2 verb

1

: to provide or connect with gearing

2

: to prepare for operation

gear up for production

3

: to make suitable

a book geared for children