motor
mo·tor/ˈmoʊtəɹ/noun, adjective, verb
motor is spelled M-O-T-O-R: 5 letters and 2 syllables (mo·tor). It appears 34 times per million words in written English, the 2,831st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, motor means “A machine or device that converts other energy forms into mechanical energy, or imparts motion” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of motor is motors.
How many letters and syllables are in motor?
| Letters | 5: M-O-T-O-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: mo·tor |
| In writing | 34 times per million words; the 2,831st most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is motor?
Motor appears 34 times per million words in written English, the 2,831st most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce motor?
- UK /ˈməʊtə/
- US /ˈmoʊtəɹ/
- US [ˈmoʊɾɚ]
Motor has 2 syllables, split mo·tor in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-motor.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with motor?
7 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as motor from its last stressed vowel (/oʊtəɹ/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: morto.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of motor
- motors plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- motour
- motoring participle, present
- motored participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does motor mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A machine or device that converts other energy forms into mechanical energy, or imparts motion.
Near-synonyms: drive, engine (sometimes synonymous)
- 2
A motor car, or automobile, sometimes extended to other powered vehicles, such as goods vehicles.
Nice motor!
- 3
A source of power for something; an inspiration; a driving force.
- 4
Any protein capable of converting chemical energy into mechanical work.
- 5
archaicThe controller or prime mover of the universe; God.
- 6
slangThe fermenting mass of fruit that is the basis of pruno, or "prison wine".
adjective
- 1
Relating to the ability to move.
She has excellent motor skills.
- 2
Propelled by an internal combustion engine (as opposed to a steam engine or turbine).
verb
- 1
datedTo make a journey by motor vehicle; to drive.
On Saturday we motored down to Plymouth.
- 2
To rotate a jet engine or turboprop using the engine's starter, without introducing fuel into the engine.
During startup, the engine should be motored for 20 to 30 seconds to allow the shafts to straighten out, as they may have become bowed under their own weight while the airplane was sitting on the ground.
- 3
informalTo progress at a brisk pace.
Sales were slow at first, but now things are really motoring.
- 4
slangTo leave.
I gotta motor.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate motor?
Wiktionary records one abbreviation of motor: CSM.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Motor in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense machine that converts other energy forms into mechanical energy:
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does motor come from?
From Middle English motour (“controller, prime mover; God”), from Latin mōtor (“mover; that which moves something”), from mōtō (“to set in motion”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).