to goose
1
8.0
- verb
- /ɡus/
- Informal
- Please goose the engine to help us reach highway speeds.
- goose the throttle
- goose the gas
Examples
-
Joe goosed his rig through Cordwood's three stop signs and one light, past the West One Bank and the Log In Bar, the Lewis-Clark movie house whose owner, Harvey Manners, an ex-logger Christian fundamentalist, was bankrupting himself by limiting features to G and PG.
Fiction book (2000) -
"You go to hell," he said, then goosed the car past her and down South Park to Simpson.
Fiction book (1994) -
So you have to basically goose the liver to do its job.
-
Goose your engine and get out.
-
Back on the highway, I goosed her to 60, but that felt too fast, so I slowed to 50, rolled down my window, and looked into the dark woods.
Fiction book (1998) -
I goosed the throttle back to full to close range and keyed my comm.
Fiction book (1999) -
Nash stuck the red flasher on the roof and goosed the siren, a quick moan.
Fiction book (2002) -
He goosed the accelerator and the car sped forward in a flash.
-
After the car slowed down, I had to goose the gas pedal to get moving again.
Synonyms
9
3.7
To press the pedal in a car to make it go faster or hurry to finish something
Idioms
To destroy a steady source of income by greedy short-term choices
- Informal
Doing something risky and foolish that will likely make you lose money or get into trouble
- Informal
A saying that you should not expect a wild person or thing to behave calmly
Phrasal Verbs
Compounds
- US
4
2.7
A large wild goose from North America with a black head and neck and white cheeks
2
3.2
A large wild goose with a black head and white cheek patches that honks loudly and is often near lakes
- UK
2
3.7
A small raised bump on the skin that appears when you feel cold, afraid, or have strong feelings
1
7.5
Fat from geese that people use in cooking and rub on the skin as a simple medicine
1
7.7
A low-growing plant that grows back each year with silvery undersides on its leaves
- Specialized
1
9.5
A small sea animal with a shell on a stalk that sticks to ships and driftwood
- US
1
7.2
A wild goose from North America with dark feathers in summer and white in winter
- US
A wild plum tree from eastern and central North America that makes red-orange fruit with yellow flesh
How Fast
Surface Forms
Etymology
To goose an engine means 'to give a sudden burst of power', and this use comes from the idea of a quick push or pinch that makes things speed up. So to goose a car or engine is to make it jump forward suddenly.