Meaning & use
gear shift
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
The lever or handle inside a vehicle that the driver moves to change gears.
Grammar: Countable: you can say 'a gear shift' or 'the gear shift'. It refers to the physical part, not the action.
Patterns
- move the gear shift
- put the car in gear using the gear shift
He put his hand on the gear shift and pulled it back into second.
The gear shift was stiff, so the mechanic lubricated the linkage.
She couldn't find the gear shift in the dark.
nouncountable
The act or process of changing from one gear to another while driving.
Grammar: Often used with 'smooth' or 'rough' to describe how well the gears change.
Patterns
- a smooth gear shift
- a rough gear shift
The new transmission gives a much smoother gear shift.
You could hear every gear shift as the bus climbed the hill.
Word forms
| plural | gear shifts |
|---|
Common combinations
- move the gear shift
- Move the gear shift down to go faster.
- manual gear shift
- This car has a manual gear shift, so you have to change gears yourself.
- automatic gear shift
- With an automatic gear shift, the car changes gears without a clutch.
- gear shift lever
- The gear shift lever was loose and wobbled.
Synonyms and how they differ
- gearstick
- British English; same meaning, but 'gearstick' is more common in the UK.
- gear lever
- British English; also used in formal or technical contexts.
- shifter
- Informal American English; often used for bicycles as well as cars.
Commonly confused: gear shift or gear change?
gear shift vs gear change
British English prefers 'gear change' for the action, while 'gear shift' is the American term for both the lever and the action.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'gear shift' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Gear shift' is the lever used to change gears, so moving it to change gears is correct. The other options confuse it with the horn, the fuel tank, or a phone accessory.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “gear shift”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.