Meaning & use
gearbox
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountable
the part of a vehicle or machine that contains the gears and controls how power is sent to the wheels or other moving parts.
Grammar: Countable: you can say a gearbox, the gearbox, or gearboxes. It is often used with car, manual, or automatic.
Patterns
- a manual/automatic gearbox
- the gearbox is broken
- change the gearbox
The car's gearbox is making a strange noise, so I need to take it to a mechanic.
This model comes with either a manual or an automatic gearbox.
He replaced the gearbox after it failed on the highway.
Word forms
| plural | gearboxes |
|---|
Common combinations
- manual gearbox
- Learning to drive a manual gearbox takes practice.
- automatic gearbox
- Most new cars in the US have an automatic gearbox.
- gearbox oil
- Check the gearbox oil level regularly.
- gearbox failure
- A gearbox failure can be expensive to repair.
Synonyms and how they differ
- transmission
- In American English, transmission is the more common word for the whole system that includes the gears; gearbox is often used for the metal case itself or in British English for the whole unit.
Word family
Commonly confused: gearbox or gear lever?
gearbox vs gear lever
A gear lever (or gearstick) is the handle you move to change gears, not the box that contains the gears.
Practice
My car is old and its ______ is very noisy when I change gears.
Choose one answer.
The gearbox is the part that contains the gears and makes a noise when it is worn. A gear lever is the handle you touch, a transmission is similar but more common in American English for the whole system, and the clutch is a different part that connects the engine to the wheels.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “gearbox”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.