out of gear

Variant of gear

gear definition

gear (gir)

noun

    1. Obsolete the clothing and equipment of a soldier, knight, etc.
    2. clothing; apparel
  2. movable property; esp., apparatus or equipment for some particular task, as a workman's tools, the rigging of a ship, a harness, etc.
    1. a toothed wheel, disk, etc. designed to mesh with another or with the thread of a worm
    2. a system of two or more gears meshed together so that the motion of one controls the speed and torque of another
    3. a specific adjustment of such a system
    4. any part of a mechanism performing a specific function the steering gear

Etymology: ME gere, prob. < ON gervi, preparation, ornament, akin to OE gearo, yare

adjective

Chiefly Brit., Slang highly acceptable, attractive, etc.

transitive verb

  1. to furnish with gear; harness
  2. to adapt (one thing) so as to conform with another to gear production to demand
  3. Mech.
    1. to connect by gears
    2. to furnish with gears
    3. to put into gear

intransitive verb

Mech. to be in, or come into, proper adjustment or working order
gear Idioms

gear down

to adjust gears so that the driven element goes slower than the driving element, with a consequent increase in torque

gear up

  1. to adjust gears so that the driven element goes faster than the driving element, with a consequent decrease in torque
  2. to accelerate; increase efficiency (of) the factory geared up production

high gear

☆
  1. the arrangement of gears providing the greatest speed but little torque
  2. Informal high speed or efficiency

in (or out of) gear

  1. (not) connected to the motor
  2. (not) in proper adjustment or working order

low gear

☆
  1. the arrangement of gears providing little speed but great torque
  2. Informal low speed or efficiency

reverse gear

the arrangement of gears providing reverse, or backward, motion

shift gears

☆
  1. to change from one gear arrangement to another
  2. to change one's approach in handling a problem

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Comments
Improve this definition.
Do you have more to add? Share your linguistic knowledge or observation.
/Register to save your comments.