noun
- a competition of speed in running, skating, riding, etc.
- a series of such competitions for horses, cars, etc. on a regular course
- any contest or competition likened to a race: the race for mayor, a race for power
- a steady onward movement or course
- the span of life
- a swift current of water
- the channel for a current of water, esp. one built to use the water industrially: a millrace
- a channel or groove for the moving parts of a machine, as the groove for the balls in a ball bearing
- Aeron. slipstream
Origin:
ME (North) ras(e) < ON rās, a running, rush, akin to OE ræs, swift movement, attack < IE *eras-, to flow, move rapidly < base *er-, *or-, to set in motion > run, orient
intransitive verb raced, racing
- to take part in a competition of speed; run a race
- to go or move swiftly
- to move or revolve so swiftly as to be out of control, because of less resistance or a lighter load: said of machinery