gear

(gîr)

a. A toothed machine part, such as a wheel or cylinder, that meshes with another toothed part to transmit motion or to change speed or direction.

b. A complete assembly that performs a specific function in a larger machine.

c. A transmission configuration for a specific ratio of engine to axle torque in a motor vehicle.

2. Equipment, such as tools or clothing, used for a particular activity: fishing gear. See Synonyms at equipment.

a. Clothing and accessories: the latest gear for teenagers.

b. Personal belongings, including clothing: keeps her gear in a trunk.

4. The harness for a horse.

5. Nautical

a. A ship's rigging.

b. A sailor's personal effects.

v. geared, gear·ing, gears

v.tr.

a. To equip with gears.

b. To connect by gears.

c. To put into gear.

2. To adjust or adapt so as to make suitable: geared the speech to a conservative audience.

3. To provide with gear; equip.

v.intr.

1. To come into or be in gear.

2. To shift a transmission: geared down to take the curve.

3. To become adjusted so as to fit or blend.

Phrasal Verb:

gear up

To get ready or cause to get ready for a coming action or event: a group of investors who had geared up for the takeover fight; geared themselves up for an argument.

[Middle English gere, equipment, from Old Norse gervi; akin to gera, to do, make, make ready.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

gear up

vb (adverb)

1. (Mechanical Engineering) (tr) to equip with gears

2. to prepare, esp for greater efficiency: is our industry geared up for these new challenges?.

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Verb

gear up - make ready or suitable or equip in advance for a particular purpose or for some use, event, etc; "Get the children ready for school!"; "prepare for war"; "I was fixing to leave town after I paid the hotel bill"

prepare, ready, set, fix, set up

alter, change, modify - cause to change; make different; cause a transformation; "The advent of the automobile may have altered the growth pattern of the city"; "The discussion has changed my thinking about the issue"

socialise, socialize - prepare for social life; "Children have to be socialized in school"

provide - take measures in preparation for; "provide for the proper care of the passengers on the cruise ship"

cram - prepare (students) hastily for an impending exam

precondition - put into the required condition beforehand

fix - kill, preserve, and harden (tissue) in order to prepare for microscopic study

mount - fix onto a backing, setting, or support; "mount slides for macroscopic analysis"

lay out, set up, set - get ready for a particular purpose or event; "set up an experiment"; "set the table"; "lay out the tools for the surgery"

winterise, winterize - prepare for winter; "winterize cars"; "winterize your houses"

summerise, summerize - prepare for summer; "summerize your car"; "summerize a house"

prime - insert a primer into (a gun, mine, or charge) preparatory to detonation or firing; "prime a cannon"; "prime a mine"

crop, cultivate, work - prepare for crops; "Work the soil"; "cultivate the land"

brace, poise - prepare (oneself) for something unpleasant or difficult

Translations

w>gear up

vi → heraufschalten, in einen höheren Gang schalten

vt sep engine → höhertourig auslegen or machen; to gear oneself up for something (fig) → sich auf etw (acc) → einstellen

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007