Illustration of gear
- G gear 6a(2)
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
geared; gearing; gears
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
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.
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
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
Jackson Thompson, Fox News, 25 Jan. 2025
Hoping to make that back, Davis insisted on adding background vocals to the sparse title track to gear it toward radio, a move that horrified Carmen.
—Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 19 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for gear
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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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
In 2022, the statue was dressed in New York Giants gear ahead of their matchup against the Eagles in the divisional round.
—Jackson Thompson, Fox News, 25 Jan. 2025
Hoping to make that back, Davis insisted on adding background vocals to the sparse title track to gear it toward radio, a move that horrified Carmen.
—Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 19 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for gear
Cite this Entry
“Gear.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gear. Accessed 18 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
gear
1 of 2 noun1
: 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
gear
2 of 2 verb1
: to provide or connect with gearing
2
: to prepare for operation
gear up for production
3
: to make suitable
a book geared for children
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