Locomotive
//ˌləʊkəˈməʊtɪv// adj, noun, slang
adj, noun, slang ·Common ·High school level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The power unit of a train that pulls the coaches or wagons.
"As on all other British Railways standard locomotives to date, the lubrication of motion pins and reversing gear is by grease nipple and gun."
- 2 a wheeled vehicle consisting of a self-propelled engine that is used to draw trains along railway tracks wordnet
- 3 A traction engine. rare
- 4 A cheer characterized by a slow beginning and a progressive increase in speed. slang
- 5 Any of various early road vehicles, steam-powered, etc., forerunners of the modern car. archaic
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- 6 A country which drives the world economy by having a high level of imports, such as the United States.
Adjective
- 1 Of or relating to locomotion.
- 2 Of or relating to the power unit of a train which does not carry passengers or freight itself.
- 3 Moving, or capable of motion.
"Pindar seems to imply that these figures were actually locomotive automata."
Adjective
- 1 of or relating to locomotion wordnet
Example
More examples"The locomotive was pulling a long line of freight cars."
Etymology
From French locomotif, from Latin locō (literally “from a place”) (ablative of locus (“place”)) + Vulgar Latin mōtivus (“moving”) (see motive). In the rail transport sense, ellipsis of locomotive (steam) engine, attested from 1814.
Related phrases
More for "locomotive"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.