en‧gine S2 W2 / endʒən, endʒɪn / 名词 [可数名词]

1 the part of a vehicle that produces power to make it move → motor

start/switch on an engine

The engine won’t start.

stop/turn off/switch off an engine

He switched off the car’s engine and waited.

Is the engine running smoothly?

diesel/petrol etc engine

an old steam engine

We were stranded with engine trouble on a deserted highway.

2 a vehicle that pulls a railway train

3 [通常单数形式] formal something powerful that causes great changes in society

engine of change/growth etc

The Marshall Plan was the engine of post-war economic growth.

Rome’s deadly war engine

→ fire engine

COLLOCATIONS

动词

switch on/turn on/start an engine I fastened my seat belt and turned on the engine.

switch off/turn off/stop an engine Maggie pulled over and switched off the engine.

rev (up) an engine British English , gun an engine American English (= make an engine go very fast ) As the lights turned green, Chris gunned the engine and we surged forward.

an engine runs He parked outside the bank and kept the engine running.

an engine idles/ticks over (= runs slowly while the vehicle, machine etc is not moving ) The taxi waited at the kerb, its engine idling noisily.

an engine cuts out (= stops suddenly ) The engine keeps cutting out.

形容词

big/powerful The newer model has a more powerful engine.

small The engine is small, so it’s quite economical to run.

a petrol/diesel engine The van has a 2.5 litre diesel engine.

a jet engine the plane’s powerful jet engines

a car/motorbike etc engine I heard the sound of a car engine in the distance.

engine + NOUN

engine trouble (= problems with an engine ) When the boat developed engine trouble, the crew had to abandon ship.

engine failure (= when an engine stops working suddenly ) Their aircraft suffered engine failure and crashed into the sea.

engine capacity (= an engine’s size or power ) The engine capacity of motorcycles ranges from 50cc to 1800cc.