Definition

Noun: 1. A forward gear in a vehicle's transmission that provides the highest ratio of output shaft speed to engine speed: This gear allows the vehicle to travel at its maximum speed for a given engine speed (RPM). It is used for efficient cruising at high speeds.

Usage

High gear is used to describe the specific gear setting in a manual or automatic transmission designed for maximum speed and fuel efficiency during steady, high-speed travel. * After merging onto the highway, he shifted into high gear. * For fuel efficiency on long trips, it's best to keep the car in high gear.

Advanced Usage

• "to be in high gear": An idiom meaning to be operating at maximum speed, intensity, or activity.
  • With the deadline approaching, the project team is now in high gear.
• "to kick into high gear": An idiom meaning to suddenly begin operating with maximum effort, speed, or intensity.
  • The marketing campaign will kick into high gear next month.

Variants and Related Words

• Top gear (noun): A synonym for , commonly used in British English.
  • He cruised down the motorway in top gear.
• Overdrive (noun): A special gear ratio, often higher than standard high gear, used for sustained highway cruising to reduce engine RPM and improve fuel economy.
  • Engage overdrive for more economical highway driving.

Synonyms

• Top gear
• High speed (in the context of mechanical operation, not a direct synonym for the gear itself)

Related Idioms

• In high gear: Operating at peak performance or maximum effort.
  • Production has been in high gear all week to meet demand.
• Kick into high gear: To suddenly increase effort or speed significantly.
  • We need to kick into high gear if we want to finish on time.

Noun

1. a forward gear with a gear ratio that gives the greatest vehicle velocity for a given engine speed