a comparatively small and powerful engine, especially an internal-combustion engine in an automobile, motorboat, or the like.
any self-powered vehicle.
a person or thing that imparts motion, especially a contrivance, as a steam engine, that receives and modifies energy from some natural source in order to utilize it in driving machinery.
Also called electric motor. Electricity. a machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy, as an induction motor.
motors,stocks or bonds in automobile companies.
adjective
pertaining to or operated by a motor.
of, for, by, or pertaining to motor vehicles: motor freight.
designed or for automobiles, their drivers, or their passengers: The hotel has a motor lobby in its parking garage for picking up and discharging passengers.
causing or producing motion.
Physiology. conveying an impulse that results or tends to result in motion, as a nerve.
Psychology, Physiology.Also motoric. of, relating to, or involving muscular movement: a motor response; motor images.
verb (used without object)
to ride or travel in an automobile; drive: They motored up the coast.
verb (used with object)
Chiefly British. to drive or transport by car: He motored his son to school.
Origin of motor
1580–90; <Latin mōtor mover, equivalent to mō- (variant stem of movēre to move) + -tor-tor
OTHER WORDS FROM motor
mul·ti·mo·tor,noun
Words nearby motor
motocross, motofacient, moton, motoneuron, moto perpetuo, motor, motorable, motor aphasia, motor area, motor ataxia, motorbicycle
When a fan is driven by a motor, air enters the back and accelerates out the front.
The science behind how an aircraft glides|By Peter Garrison/Flying Mag|September 3, 2020|Popular Science
Though air pollution vastly improved in recent decades—thanks largely to technology and policy aimed at motor vehicles—it remains a problem in many large cities.
City pavement is a big source of air pollution|Ula Chrobak|September 3, 2020|Popular Science
For another, they’re smart cookies, meaning they can be trained to walk on a treadmill while the implant records from their motor cortex to predict the movement of each joint.
Neuralink’s Wildly Anticipated New Brain Implant: the Hype vs. the Science|Shelly Fan|September 1, 2020|Singularity Hub
Most vehicles today house internal-combustion engines, but cars with electric motors are gaining ground.
50 years ago, scientists were trying to develop a low-emission car|Erin Garcia de Jesus|September 1, 2020|Science News
Whatever the class, federal law restricts “low speed electric bicycle” motors with 750 watts of power.
Do You Want to Buy an E-Cargo Bike? Read This First.|Joe Lindsey|August 30, 2020|Outside Online
They can hear the sound of his boat's motor, growing louder as it comes over the horizon.
Alfred Hitchcock’s Fade to Black: The Great Director’s Final Days|David Freeman|December 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The turbulent waters caused one of his oars to crack, which—without a motor or a sail—can be severely detrimental to his voyage.
Victor Mooney’s Epic Adventure for His Dead Brother|Justin Jones|October 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He was initially with a group that traveled by motor vehicles, but has spent the past two decades with a horse at his helm.
But if the outness of LGBT Americans is indeed the motor for social change, then there is certainly still cause for concern.
Now Is the Time to Come Out|Samantha Allen|October 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“I would build a motor car for the great multitude,” he said.
From the Model T to the Model S|The Daily Beast|September 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But for the accident to the motor they would not have dreamed of making a landing short of the aviation field at Bar-le-Duc.
Air Service Boys Over The Enemy's Lines|Charles Amory Beach
How the motor roared as our hero jerked his levers back into their old position.
The Hero of Panama|F. S. Brereton
The motor was started and the machinery began to hum and throb.
Tom Swift and his Wireless Message|Victor Appleton
They are used in practically all the work for which gas engines are employed, including automobiles, motor boats, and aeroplanes.
The Boy's Book of New Inventions|Harry E. Maule
A motor rushed past her, covering her with dust and causing her to clench her hands in anger.
The Halo|Bettina von Hutten
British Dictionary definitions for motor
motor
/ (ˈməʊtə) /
noun
the engine, esp an internal-combustion engine, of a vehicle
(as modifier)a motor scooter
Also called: electric motora machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy by means of the forces exerted on a current-carrying coil placed in a magnetic field
any device that converts another form of energy into mechanical energy to produce motion
an indispensable part or player that moves a process or system along
mainlyBritisha car or other motor vehicle
as modifiermotor spares
adjective
producing or causing motion
physiol
of or relating to nerves or neurons that carry impulses that cause muscles to contract
of or relating to movement or to muscles that induce movement
verb
(intr)to travel by car
(tr)Britishto transport by car
(intr)informalto move fast; make good progress
(tr)to motivate
Word Origin for motor
C16: from Latin mōtor a mover, from movēre to move