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racing car

racing car

7 2.8
A car built to go very fast on tracks in sports competitions
  • noun
translation icon : coche de carreras
  • He spent every minute he could at the Indianapolis Speedway and teamed up with the automobile legend Harry Miller, one of the greatest designers of racing cars who ever lived.
  • racing car driver
  • Formula One racing car
  • build a racing car

They were like racing cars and they were hand painted.

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Examples

  • The automotive innovator who tinkered with machinery and designed racing cars in his younger years established the Ford Motor Co. in 1903, when he was 40.

    Academic text (2006)
  • The race has a long and glorious history, featuring the most advanced and technologically relevant racing cars.

    Blog text (16)
  • We wanted a car that would feel like a proper racing car.

    Blog text (23)
  • "Owning a racing car is such a joy," he says in the video.

    Blog text (22)
  • Jaguar, it's a racing car.

  • Passersby looked admiringly at his magnificent racing car.

    Fiction book (1998)
  • The DeltaWing is a racing car designed by Ben Bowlby that debuted at the 2012 24 Hours of Le Mans.

    Blog text (32)
  • The racing car zoomed past the finish line, leaving the other vehicles behind.

  • She dreams of becoming a professional driver for a top racing car team.

  • The mechanic spent hours fine-tuning the racing car for maximum speed and performance.

Synonyms

race car
vsracing car
29 2.7

A very fast car built to compete in events on a track

is defined by specialized handling for competing in motor events
racecar
vsracing car
15 2.8

A very fast car built to race on tracks

covers competition vehicles beyond only track events in motor racing
racer
vsracing car
13 2.8

A fast car built specially to compete on a track

emphasizes specialized handling and design for formal motor competitions
stock car
vsracing car
  • Jargon
6 3.9

A racing car made from a regular car and changed for speed and safety

is a purpose built competition vehicle with specialized handling

How Fast

racing car
7 2.8
sports car
50 2.8
minicar
1 3.5
minivan
  • US
80 1.9

Surface Forms

racing car singular
racing cars plural

Morphology

racing + car

The meaning 'a car designed for racing' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'racing' (relating to the sport of racing) with 'car' (a motor vehicle), so a B1 learner who knows both words will infer it as a car used for racing. This adjectival/participle + noun composition is a common, productive pattern in English (and in many other languages), making the expression immediately comprehensible.

Etymology

Racing car comes from the simple idea of a car built for racing, so imagine a vehicle made to go very fast and to handle sharp turns on a track. That is why it means 'a car designed to compete in races'.