- gear
- {{Roman}}I.{{/Roman}} noun1 in a vehicleADJECTIVE▪ bottom, top (both BrE)▪
She was driving along in top gear.
▪ high, low▪ first, second, etc.▪ reverseVERB + GEAR▪ engage, select▪Engage first gear and move off.
▪ change (esp. BrE), shift (AmE), switch (usually figurative)▪It's difficult to steer and change/shift gear at the same time.
▪He found it hard to switch gears when he retired.
▪ change into (BrE), move into, put sth into, shift into (AmE), slam sth into, slip sth into▪She put the car into first gear and drove off.
▪ 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 (BrE), grind▪He was crashing the gears because he was so nervous.
GEAR + NOUN▪ change▪She made a smooth gear change.
▪ lever, shift (AmE), stick (usually gearstick) (BrE)PREPOSITION▪ in (a/the) gear▪I was driving along in third gear.
▪Some drivers leave the car in gear when parking on hills.
▪ out of gear▪Leave the car out of gear.
2 equipment/clothesADJECTIVE▪ camping, climbing, fishing, hiking, riding, running, sports, swimming▪ breathing (esp. BrE)▪firemen in breathing gear
▪ protective▪The hot weather makes it hard for soldiers in protective gear.
▪ landing▪the plane's landing gear
▪ battle, combat, riot▪ outdoor▪ designer▪She was the only one wearing expensive designer gear.
VERB + GEAR▪ be dressed in, have on, wear▪She had her running gear on.
▪ put on, take offPREPOSITION▪ in … gear▪{{Roman}}II.{{/Roman}}a group of men in combat gear
verb be geared to sth; be geared towards/toward sthADVERB▪ primarily▪ specifically▪Our training sessions are geared specifically to the needs of older workers.
▪ clearly▪ entirely, exclusively▪an economy exclusively geared towards/toward tourism
Collocations dictionary. 2013.
