Etymology : Middle English gere, from Old Norse gervi, gorvi; akin to Old English gearwe equipment, clothing, gearu ready; more at YARE
Pronunciation : gir
Function : noun
Date : 14th century
1. set of interlocking wheels; mechanism in an automobile; tools, supplies; clothes (Slang); drugs (Slang). equip with gears; put into gear (Machinery); supply, equip; adjust, conform. clothing; "The new gear I got is all that! ". gear\gear\ , n. [oe. gere, ger, as. gearwe clothing, adornment, armor, fr. gearo, gearu, ready, yare; akin to ohg. garawī, garwī ornament, dress. see:
yare, and cf. garb dress.].
2. clothing; garments; ornaments. array thyself in thy most gorgeous gear.
3. goods; property; household stuff. homely gear and common ware.
4. whatever is prepared for use or wear; manufactured stuff or material. clad in a vesture of unknown gear.
5. the harness of horses or cattle; trapping.
6. warlike accouterments. [scot.].
7. manner; custom; behavior. [obs.].
8. business matters; affairs; concern. [obs.] thus go they both together to their gear.
9. (mech.) (a) a toothed wheel, or cogwheel; as, a spur gear, or a bevel gear; also, toothed wheels, collectively. (b) an apparatus for performing a special function; gearing; as, the feed gear of a lathe. (c) engagement of parts with each other; as, in gear; out of gear.
10. pl. (naut.) see:
1st jeer (b).
11. anything worthless; stuff; nonsense; rubbish. [obs. or prov. eng.] that servant of his that confessed and uttered this gear was an honest man.
12. Clothing; garments; ornaments.
13. Goods; property; household stuff.
14. Whatever is prepared for use or wear; manufactured stuff or material.
15. The harness of horses or cattle; trapping.
16. Warlike accouterments.
17. Manner; custom; behavior.
18. Business matters; affairs; concern.
19. A toothed wheel, or cogwheel; as, a spur gear, or a bevel gear; also, toothed wheels, collectively.
20. An apparatus for performing a special function; gearing; as, the feed gear of a lathe.
21. Engagement of parts with each other; as, in gear; out of gear.
22. See 1st Jeer.
23. Anything worthless; stuff; nonsense; rubbish.
24. To dress; to put gear on; to harness.
25. To provide with gearing.
26. To be in, or come into, gear. a toothed wheel that engages another toothed mechanism in order to change the speed or direction of transmitted motion equipment consisting of miscellaneous articles needed for a particular operation or sport etc. a mechanism for transmitting motion by gears for some specific purpose set the level or character of; "She pitched her speech to the teenagers in the audience".
27. 1. The gears on a machine or vehicle are a device for changing the rate at which energy is changed into motion. On hills, he must use low gears The car was in fourth gear He put the truck in gear and drove on.
28. The gear involved in a particular activity is the equipment or special clothing that you use. About 100 officers in riot gear were needed to break up the fight. fishing gear They helped us put our gear back into the van.
29. Gear means clothing. I used to wear trendy gear but it just looked ridiculous.
30. If someone or something is geared to or towards a particular purpose, they are organized or designed in order to achieve that purpose. Colleges are not always geared to the needs of mature students My training was geared towards winning gold in Munich. be geared to sb/sth to be organized in a way that is suitable for a particular purpose or situation. Machine component consisting of a toothed wheel attached to a rotating shaft. Gears operate in pairs, the teeth of one engaging the teeth of a second, to transmit and modify rotary motion and torque. To transmit motion smoothly, the contacting surfaces of gear teeth must be carefully shaped to a specific profile. The smaller of a gear pair is often known as the pinion. If the pinion is on the driving shaft, the pair acts to reduce speed and to amplify torque; if the pinion is on the driven shaft, the pair acts to increase speed and reduce torque.