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gear

gear

499 2.1
Things you use for a certain activity, like hiking or sports
  • noun
  • /ɡɪr/
translation icon : equipo
  • Before the hike, make sure to check all your outdoor gear to ensure you have everything you need.
  • fishing gear
  • sports gear
  • used gear

He doesn't use really any outboard gear other than effects.

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Examples

  • Grab your cameras, load your gear, get your eclipse glasses.

  • By 1980, though, several companies were offering guides and gear to less-seasoned climbers.

    Academic text (2011)
  • So it's it's an expensive piece of gear to have to deal with.

  • Secure your gear, find a seat.

  • First we need to load up on some gear, or we're all gonna die.

  • I'm wearing my gym gear trying to get fit.

  • You got your monitor, you got your streaming gear, you got your audio gear.

  • I'd given away all my hockey gear when I left New York in 1984.

    Academic text (1999)
  • Within minutes, I had unloaded my gear and stood watching as the plane disappeared over the horizon.

    Academic text (1990)
  • Children could write their own commercials for sports gear, incorporating the principles of force, friction, and gravity.

    Academic text (2015)

Synonyms

equipment
vsgear
1.9

Tools and machines needed for a particular activity

is the general word for items needed for a particular activity
kit
vsgear
302 1.6

A group of tools and items for a particular purpose

is more general and need not be packed as a set
hardware
vsgear
148 2.7

Tools and metal items used for building or fixing things

is broader, covering nonmetal items as well for the activity
setup
vsgear
133 2.8

A set of equipment used for a specific activity

focuses on the items themselves rather than their arrangement
rig
vsgear
126 4.9

A group of equipment used for a specific job, like sound or fishing

is the neutral term for necessary items without trade or tool sense
machinery
vsgear
104 3.3

Large tools and equipment used in factories or farms

is the general term that also includes nonmachine tools and items
outfit
vsgear
47 3.9

A set of tools and equipment used for a particular activity

is broader, not only sets but any required items for the activity
apparatus
vsgear
45 6.1

A set of machines or tools made to do a particular job

is more general, not necessarily complex or specialised
paraphernalia
vsgear
29 8.2

Things used for a certain activity, like camping or photography

is the common term covering all needed items without implying disorder

Idioms

22 3.6

With the gears engaged so a car or machine can move when the engine runs

4 4.4

Working very fast and doing everything needed

2 9.9

Start working quickly and with more energy

1 3.5

Completely ready and working at full speed

out of gear
  • Specialized
1 4.6

The gears are not engaged so the engine does not move the wheels

A person who has gear for an activity but does not know how to use it

9.9

To start working quickly and seriously

Compounds

landing gear
  • Specialized
17 3.1

Wheels and parts under a plane that hold it on the ground during takeoff and landing

13 3.7

A forward setting in a vehicle that lets it go fastest with low engine speed

8 1.7

Equipment that people use to catch fish, like rods, nets, lines and hooks

4 1.6

Clothing and items like a raincoat or umbrella that keep you dry in rain

3 2.5

A car setting used after first for low to medium speed and more power

3 2.8

A gear in a car that makes the car move slowly when you start

2 3.2

A lower setting in a vehicle that gives more power and less speed for starting and climbing

reverse gear
  • Specialized
1 3.7

A gear in a vehicle that makes it move backwards

1 3.4

A car setting that gives more speed than second but more power than higher gears

Clothing that keeps you dry and warm in rain or storms

1 3.2

Moving the gears in a car changes speed or power

1 3.6

A handle in a car you move to change gears

top gear
  • Informal
1 3.8

A time when someone works at their highest speed or energy

laughing gear
  • Archaic
1 9.9

A person's mouth and their ability to speak or make happy sounds

gear queer
  • Slang
1 9.9

A person who loves equipment for hobbies like cycling

reduction gear
  • Specialized
1 5.3

A group of gears that makes a fast shaft turn more slowly and gives more turning power to the output

planetary gear
  • Specialized
1 7.4

A gear that turns around a central sun gear to change speed in a gearbox

sun gear
  • Specialized
1 6.0

A central gear that other gears turn around and that drives them

spur gear
  • Specialized
1 5.3

A wheel with straight teeth that turns another wheel on a parallel axle

worm gear
  • Specialized
1 6.1

A gear with a screw shaft that turns a toothed wheel to change direction and make turning slower and stronger

bevel gear
  • Specialized
6.5

A wheel with teeth set at an angle to change motion between two crossing shafts

chafing gear
  • Jargon
8.5

Material like rope that protects a line or pole from rubbing

differential gear
  • Specialized
5.8

A set of gears that lets two wheels turn at different speeds when a car turns

epicyclic gear
  • Specialized
8.8

A gear that turns around a central gear to change speed or turning force

epicyclic gear train
  • Specialized
6.5

A set of gears where one gear moves around a central gear while spinning to change speed or force

fixed-gear drivetrain
  • Specialized
7.0

A system that connects the pedals to the rear wheel so you must keep pedalling while the bike moves

gear case
  • Specialized
4.1

A metal cover that holds and protects gears in a machine or vehicle

gear mechanism
  • Specialized
4.1

A group of wheels with teeth that pass movement and force to make a machine work

A sudden change in plan or way of doing things to improve results

gear wheel
  • Specialized
3.5

A round wheel with teeth that fits together with another wheel to move parts or change speed

Clothes and tools you need for long walks in hills or mountains

pinion and ring gear
  • Specialized
8.0

Gears that fit together at a right angle to send power between car axles

planet gear
  • Specialized
7.7

A small wheel with teeth that turns around a central gear and fits inside an outer ring

Equipment for horses like saddles, bridles and harnesses

steering gear
  • Specialized
4.0

A car part that moves the front wheels when the driver turns the wheel

How Specialized

apparatus
45 6.1
kit
302 1.6
gear
499 2.1
equipment
1.9
stuff
  • Informal
1.0

Surface Forms

gear singular
gears plural

Etymology

Gear originally meant the clothes and things you need for a job or trip, from an old English word for 'clothing' or 'equipment'. So gear today still means the equipment you wear or carry for an activity.