Meaning & use
tractor
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Meanings
nouncountable
A powerful motor vehicle with large rear wheels, used for pulling farm equipment or heavy loads.
Grammar: Countable noun; the plural is 'tractors'. Often used with 'farm' or 'by'.
Patterns
- a farm tractor
- drive a tractor
- by tractor
The farmer used a tractor to plow the field.
They transported the hay by tractor.
He learned to drive a tractor when he was twelve.
nouncountableAmerican
The front part of a large truck that pulls a separate trailer (American English).
Grammar: In American English, 'tractor' can mean the cab unit of a tractor-trailer; in British English this is usually called a 'lorry cab' or 'tractor unit'.
Patterns
- a tractor-trailer
- the tractor unit
The tractor pulled two trailers full of goods.
He drove a tractor-trailer across the country.
Word forms
| plural | tractors |
|---|
Common combinations
- farm tractor
- The farm tractor broke down during harvest.
- drive a tractor
- She can drive a tractor as well as a car.
- tractor-trailer
- A tractor-trailer blocked the highway for hours.
- pull a plow
- The tractor pulled a plow through the heavy soil.
Synonyms and how they differ
- digger
- A digger is a machine for digging, not for pulling; a tractor is mainly for pulling heavy equipment.
Word family
- traction noun
- The grip of a wheel or tire on a surface.
Commonly confused: tractor or trader?
tractor vs trader
A trader is a person who buys and sells goods; a tractor is a vehicle. They sound similar but have different meanings.
Practice
The farmer used a ______ to pull the plow across the field.
Choose one answer.
'Tractor' is the farm vehicle that pulls machinery. 'Trader' is a person, 'traction' is grip, and 'tracker' is a device for following something.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “tractor”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.