gear
[noun]
Synonyms:
- cog, cogwheel, gearwheel
- mechanism, cogs, machinery, works
- equipment, accoutrements, apparatus, instruments, paraphernalia, supplies, tackle, tools
- clothing, clothes, costume, dress, garments, outfit, togs, wear
[verb]
Synonyms:
- equip, adapt, adjust, fit

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Related Words: accessories, adjuncts, appendages, appurtenances, belongings, effects, means, possessions

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English Thesaurus: clothes, clothing, garment, dress, wear, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. gear¹ S3 /ɡɪə $ ɡɪr/ noun
[Language: Old English; Origin: gearwe]

1. IN CARS ETC [uncountable and countable] the machinery in a vehicle such as a car, truck, or bicycle that you use to go comfortably at different speeds:
His mountain bike had 18 gears.
Andy drove cautiously along in third gear.
Does this thing have a reverse gear?
Any cyclist can climb a difficult hill; you just change gear.
Don’t turn off the engine while you’re still in gear.
It’s a good habit to take the car out of gear while you’re at a stoplight.

2. [uncountable and countable] used to talk about the amount of effort and energy that someone is using in a situation:
During this period, Japan’s export industries were in top gear (=were as active as they could be).
The Republican’s propaganda machine moved into high gear.
step up a gear British English (=increase the level of effort)
United stepped up a gear in the second half.

3. change gear British English, change/switch/shift gears American English to start doing something in a different way, especially using more or less energy or effort:
The boss expects us to be able to change gear just like that.

4. EQUIPMENT [uncountable] a set of equipment or tools you need for a particular activity:
He’s crazy about photography – he’s got all the gear.
We’ll need some camping gear.

5. CLOTHES [uncountable] a set of clothes that you wear for a particular occasion or activity:
Bring your rain gear.
police in riot gear

6. MACHINERY [uncountable] a piece of machinery that performs a particular job:
the landing gear of a plane
heavy lifting gear

7. DRUGS [uncountable] British English informal a word meaning illegal drugs, used by people who take drugs

8. get your ass in gear American English informal used to tell someone to hurry Synonym : move your ass:
You’d better get your ass in gear – you’re late.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. gear² verb [transitive]
be geared to somebody/something to be organized in a way that is suitable for a particular purpose or situation:
The typical career pattern was geared to men whose wives didn’t work.
be geared to do something
The course curriculum is geared to span three years.
gear up phrasal verb
to prepare for something
gear up for
The organization is gearing up for a convention in May.
gear up/be geared up to do something
Fast food restaurants are geared up to serve thousands of people daily.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

gear
noun
I. in a vehicle
ADJ. bottom, top driving along in top gear
high, low | first, second, etc. | reverse
VERB + GEAR engage, select Engage first gear and move off.
change, change into, move into, put/slam/slip sth into, shift (into), switch It's difficult to steer and change gear at the same time. She put the car into first gear and drove off. (figurative) The party organization is moving into top gear as the election approaches.
move up, step up (often figurative) Coming out of the final bend, the runner stepped up a gear to overtake the rest of the pack.
crash, grind He was crashing the gears because he was so nervous.
GEAR + NOUN change She made a smooth gear change.
lever, stick (also gearstick)
PREP. in (a/the) ~ driving along in third gear Some drivers leave the car in gear when parking on hills.
out of ~ Leave the car out of gear.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

gear
II. equipment/clothes
ADJ. camping, climbing, fishing, running, sports, swimming, walking | breathing firemen in breathing gear
landing, winding the plane's landing gear
combat, riot | outdoor | designer wearing expensive designer gear
VERB + GEAR be dressed in, have on, wear She had her running gear on.
put on, take off
PREP. in … ~ a group of young men in combat gear

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

gear
verb be geared to/towards sth
ADV. completely, entirely, exclusively, totally an economy exclusively geared towards tourism
primarily | specifically Our training programmes are geared specifically to the needs of older workers.
clearly

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

gear

first/second/third etc gear
The heavy traffic meant that we seldom got out of second gear.
a low gear (=first or second gear)
You should use a low gear when going up a hill.
a high gear (=third, fourth, or fifth gear)
Put the car into a higher gear.
top gear British English (=the highest gear)
Hamilton slipped effortlessly into top gear.
bottom gear British English (=the lowest gear)
The car trundled slowly forward in bottom gear.
reverse gear (=for driving backwards)
He put the truck into reverse gear.
change gear (also switch/shift gears American English)
It takes some time to learn when to change gear.
put the car etc into (first/second/third etc) gear
He put the car into gear, and they moved slowly forwards.
engage first/second etc gear (=put the car into gear)
Nick struggled to engage first gear.
be in the wrong gear
The straining noises from the engine told him that he was in the wrong gear.
crunch/grind the gears (=change gear in a way that makes an unpleasant noise)
He crunched the gears into reverse.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

clothes noun [plural] things you wear to cover your body or keep you warm. Clothes is always plural:
I like your clothes!
Don’t throw your dirty clothes on the floor!
a clothes shop
clothing noun [uncountable] used when talking in general about a type of clothes, or about making or selling clothes. Also used in the phrase a piece/item/article of clothing (=one of the things that someone wears):
You’ll need to take some warm clothing.
It is important to wear protective clothing at all times.
a clothing manufacturer
a clothing retailer
Police found a piece of clothing in the bushes.
I took a change of clothing with me.
garment noun [countable] formal one thing that you wear. Also used when talking about buying and selling clothes:
a long velvet garment
the garment industry
garment workers
garment factories
dress noun [uncountable] a particular style of clothes. Don’t use dress on its own:
Casual dress is not appropriate for an interview.
men in evening dress
wear noun [uncountable] used about types of clothes sold in a shop, in the following phrases. Don’t use wear on its own:
children’s wear
sports wear
casual wear
gear noun [uncountable] /ɡɪə $ ɡɪr/ informal clothes for a particular sport or activity:
She was wearing her running gear.
Have you got all your gear?
wardrobe noun [singular] all the clothes that you own, or all the clothes that you wear at a particular time of year:
Her wardrobe consisted mainly of smart clothes for work.
I will need a new summer weardrobe.
You could win a complete new wardrobe!
get dressed to put on all your clothes:
You’d better get dressed! It’s almost time to leave for school!
put something on to put on a particular piece of clothing, jewellery etc:
Wait – I just have to put my shoes on!
She was putting on her earrings in front of the mirror.
dress up to put on more formal clothes than you usually wear, or to put on special clothes for fun:
We always used to dress up to go to church.
Paul dressed up as a pirate for the party.
dress yourself to put on your clothes – used when this is difficult for someone because they are very old, young, injured etc:
He’s hurt his arm so badly that he can’t dress himself.
have something on to be wearing a particular piece of clothing, jewellery etc. Have something on is more informal than wear:
I had my new blue top on.
He had on a red tie and a grey jacket.
The boy had nothing on!
be dressed in something especially written used especially in written descriptions when describing the clothes that someone is wearing:
Alistair was dressed in his best suit and tie.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

equipment noun [uncountable] the machines, tools, or objects that you use for doing something:
All the camping equipment is in the garage.
You’ll do a better job if you have the right equipment.
We are raising money for equipment for our playgroup.
gear noun [uncountable] informal equipment and clothes for an activity that you do in your spare time:
We loaded all our gear into the boat, and set off to go fishing.
I’ve decided to sell my climbing gear.
camping gear
kit noun [countable] things for a particular purpose or activity, especially ones kept together in their own container:
You’ll find a hammer in my tool kit.
Do you have a first aid kit?
You can buy a special kit for damp-proofing your home.
apparatus noun [uncountable] tools and machines used for scientific, medical, and technical purposes:
This experiment can be performed using the apparatus shown in the diagram.
Astronauts have special breathing apparatus.
stuff noun [uncountable] informal equipment that you use to do something:
The builders have left all their stuff round the back of the house.
Where’s the decorating stuff?
things noun [plural] informal especially British English the equipment or clothes that you need for a particular activity:
She went into the shed where her father kept his gardening things.
They got all the Christmas things out of the loft.
paraphernalia noun [uncountable] written a lot of small things that are used for a particular purpose:
All the paraphernalia for making tea and coffee stood on the bedside table.
The police found drug paraphernalia all over the house.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

wear to have a particular piece of clothing or a particular style of clothing on your body:
All visitors must wear a protective helmet.
She always wears black.
Can you tell me what the man was wearing?
have something on to be wearing a particular piece of clothing, jewellery etc. Have something on is more informal than wear:
I had my new blue top on.
He had on a red tie and a grey jacket.
The boy had nothing on!
be dressed in something especially written used especially in written descriptions when describing the clothes that someone is wearing:
Alistair was dressed in his best suit and tie.
evening wear formal (=clothes worn to formal events in the evening)
The band were dressed in evening wear.
casual wear
The company makes stylish casual wear for men and women.
leisure wear
This is leisure wear for active people.
formal wear
Actresses were dressed in everything from formal wear to miniskirts.
bridal wear
a bridal wear shop
maternity wear (=for pregnant women)
The shop sells comfortable and fashionable maternity wear for every occasion.
children’s/men’s/women’s wear
the children’s wear section of the store
designer wear
I can’t afford designer wear.
clothes noun [plural] things you wear to cover your body or keep you warm. Clothes is always plural:
I like your clothes!
Don’t throw your dirty clothes on the floor!
a clothes shop
clothing noun [uncountable] used when talking in general about a type of clothes, or about making or selling clothes. Also used in the phrase a piece/item/article of clothing (=one of the things that someone wears):
You’ll need to take some warm clothing.
It is important to wear protective clothing at all times.
a clothing manufacturer
a clothing retailer
Police found a piece of clothing in the bushes.
I took a change of clothing with me.
garment noun [countable] formal one thing that you wear. Also used when talking about buying and selling clothes:
a long velvet garment
the garment industry
garment workers
garment factories
dress noun [uncountable] a particular style of clothes. Don’t use dress on its own:
Casual dress is not appropriate for an interview.
men in evening dress
gear noun [uncountable] /ɡɪə $ ɡɪr/ informal clothes for a particular sport or activity:
She was wearing her running gear.
Have you got all your gear?
wardrobe noun [singular] all the clothes that you own, or all the clothes that you wear at a particular time of year:
Her wardrobe consisted mainly of smart clothes for work.
I will need a new summer weardrobe.
You could win a complete new wardrobe!

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

gear
ɡɪə
See: high gear , slip a cog or slip a gear , throw out of gear

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲