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Locomotive

 - 4 dictionary results

lo⋅co⋅mo⋅tive

  [loh-kuh-moh-tiv]
Use Locomotive in a Sentence
–noun
1. a self-propelled, vehicular engine, powered by steam, a diesel, or electricity, for pulling or, sometimes, pushing a train or individual railroad cars.
2. an organized group cheer, usually led by a cheerleader, as at a football or basketball game, that begins slowly and progressively increases in speed in such a way as to suggest a steam locomotive.
3. Archaic. any self-propelled vehicle.
–adjective
4. of or pertaining to locomotives.
5. of, pertaining to, or aiding in locomotion or movement from place to place: the locomotive powers of most animals.
6. moving or traveling by means of its own mechanism or powers.
7. serving to produce such movement; adapted for or used in locomotion: locomotive organs.
8. having the power of locomotion: an animal that is locomotive at birth.
Origin:
1605–15; < L locō, abl. of locus place + motive (adj.); cf. ML in locō movērī to change position

Related forms:
lo⋅co⋅mo⋅tive⋅ly, adverb
lo⋅co⋅mo⋅tive⋅ness, lo⋅co⋅mo⋅tiv⋅i⋅ty, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To Locomotive
lo·co·mo·tive   (lō'kə-mō'tĭv)   
n.  

  1. A self-propelled vehicle, usually electric or diesel-powered, for pulling or pushing freight or passenger cars on railroad tracks.

  2. A driving or pulling force; an impetus: "The US could no longer serve as the locomotive for the world economy" (George Soros).

adj.  

    1. Of, relating to, or involved in locomotion.

    2. Serving to put into motion or propel forward: "It may be that the founding fathers overestimated the locomotive force of the collective and mutual self-interest" (Ian Davidson).

  2. Able to move independently from place to place.

  3. Of or relating to a self-propelled locomotive.

  4. Of or relating to travel.


[Latin locō, from a place, ablative of locus, place + Medieval Latin mōtīvus, causing motion; see motive.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

locomotive  (adj.)
1612, "pertaining to movement," from Fr. locomotif (fem. locomotive), from L. loco "from a place" (abl. of locus "place") + L.L. motivus "moving" (see motive). The noun meaning "railroad engine" is from 1829, short for locomotive engine (1815).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: lo·co·mo·tive
Pronunciation: "lO-k&-'mOt-iv
Function: adjective
: LOCOMOTOR 1 locomotive faculty typical of animal life> <locomotive organs include flagella, cilia, pseudopodia, and limbs>
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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