Tri-mode

adj

adj ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Adjective
  1. 1
    Of a train or locomotive: Designed to operate on electricity on electrified lines, or diesel-electric power (from a diesel generator) or battery power on non-electrified lines. not-comparable

    "Testing of a five-car Hitachi Class 802/0 tri-mode unit will begin in 2022, and the train could be in traffic the following year. It is expected the train will save more than 20% of fuel on Great Western Railway's London Paddington-Penzance route. The plan is for the '802' to use battery power in and out of stations, and through urban areas. Of the 305-mile route, only 53 miles as far as Newbury are electrified (17%)."

Example

More examples

"Testing of a five-car Hitachi Class 802/0 tri-mode unit will begin in 2022, and the train could be in traffic the following year. It is expected the train will save more than 20% of fuel on Great Western Railway's London Paddington-Penzance route. The plan is for the '802' to use battery power in and out of stations, and through urban areas. Of the 305-mile route, only 53 miles as far as Newbury are electrified (17%)."

Etymology

From tri- + mode.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.