motor
Americannoun
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a comparatively small and powerful engine, especially an internal-combustion engine in an automobile, motorboat, or the like.
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any self-powered vehicle.
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a person or thing that imparts motion, especially a contrivance, as a steam engine, that receives and modifies energy from some natural source in order to utilize it in driving machinery.
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Also called electric motor. Electricity. a machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy, as an induction motor.
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motors, stocks or bonds in automobile companies.
adjective
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pertaining to or operated by a motor.
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of, for, by, or pertaining to motor vehicles.
motor freight.
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designed or for automobiles, their drivers, or their passengers.
The hotel has a motor lobby in its parking garage for picking up and discharging passengers.
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causing or producing motion.
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Physiology. conveying an impulse that results or tends to result in motion, as a nerve.
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Psychology, Physiology. Also of, relating to, or involving muscular movement.
a motor response; motor images.
verb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
noun
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the engine, esp an internal-combustion engine, of a vehicle
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( as modifier )
a motor scooter
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Also called: electric motor. a machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy by means of the forces exerted on a current-carrying coil placed in a magnetic field
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any device that converts another form of energy into mechanical energy to produce motion
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an indispensable part or player that moves a process or system along
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a car or other motor vehicle
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as modifier
motor spares
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adjective
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producing or causing motion
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physiol
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of or relating to nerves or neurons that carry impulses that cause muscles to contract
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of or relating to movement or to muscles that induce movement
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verb
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(intr) to travel by car
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(tr) to transport by car
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informal (intr) to move fast; make good progress
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(tr) to motivate
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Conjugated Forms
Present
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has motoredperfect 3rd person singular
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have motoredperfect
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has been motoringperfect progressive 3rd person singular
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motoringparticiple
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is motoringprogressive 3rd person singular
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have been motoringperfect progressive
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motorssingular 3rd person
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are motoringprogressive
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am motoringprogressive 1st person singular
Past
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had motoredperfect
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motoredsimple
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were motoringprogressive plural
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had been motoringperfect progressive
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motoredparticiple
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was motoringprogressive singular
Future
Etymology
Origin of motor
1580–90; < Latin mōtor mover, equivalent to mō- (variant stem of movēre to move ) + -tor -tor
Explanation
A motor runs your car, whizzes the blender and gets your golf cart going: it's simply a machine that converts energy into motion. Coming to us from a Latin word that means "to move," motor is certainly connected to the world of motion. Without the innovation of Ford motors, most of America wouldn't be able to get anywhere today. These days the motor is undergoing some serious revisions, as engineers look for a way to power things with less gasoline and more sunshine.
Vocabulary lists containing motor
Cormac McCarthy's "The Road"
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Excerpt from "Speak"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Lately, Chahal has been sprucing up the motor inn: new cabinets, new furniture, fresh paint every few months.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 14, 2026
He died in July 2022 at the age of 42 after a long battle with motor neurone disease.
From BBC • Jun. 12, 2026
The researchers also found that motor circuits connect with other circuit types, including those in the visual and endocrine systems, which supply extra information that helps shape behavior.
From Science Daily • Jun. 10, 2026
“A grand motor court welcomes you to a residence designed for elevated living and effortless entertaining.”
From MarketWatch • Jun. 9, 2026
The Ford’s motor was already running when I slipped into the passenger side.
From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
