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Glite Dictionary
to go through the gears

to go through the gears

1 6.5
To change the gears in a vehicle one after another to make it go faster or slower
  • phrasal verb
: cambiar de marcha
  • As I accelerated down the highway, I had to go through the gears to keep up with the speed limit.

I mean, I just just made sure, you know, went through the gears well, did it go fast or was it slow?

Examples

  • I mean, I just just made sure, you know, went through the gears well, did it go fast or was it slow?

    Gas Monkey Garage

  • The car that really got me addicted was, of course, the new Fiat 128 my parents bought when I was 6; it sounded amazing going through the gears.

    Blog text (31)

  • The driver smoothly went through the gears while merging onto the busy freeway.

  • When learning to drive, it is important to go through the gears correctly to prevent stalling.

Synonyms

to shift
vsto go through the gears
39 2.3

Change gear in a vehicle, usually while driving

is about moving through several gears in order rather than one change
to move through the gears
vsto go through the gears
  • UK
1 5.7

To go through stages more easily as you gain confidence

describes a literal sequence of gear changes in a vehicle rather than metaphorical progress

Antonyms

to idle
  • Specialized
19 5.3

To run at low speed while not moving

Surface Forms

go through the gears infinitive
went through the gears past
gone through the gears past participle
going through the gears present participle
goes through the gears third person singular

Morphology

go + through + the + gear

The meaning 'to shift sequentially through the transmission settings' is directly derivable from 'go' (move), 'through' (across or sequentially), and 'gears' (transmission settings); together they describe the literal action of moving across gear positions. This is a transparent, largely literal composition (and similar phrasing exists in many languages), so a B1 learner who knows the constituents can infer the meaning without prior exposure.

Etymology

The phrase go through the gears comes from driving, where a driver moves through each gear as the vehicle speeds up or slows down. So it means 'to shift one gear after another'.