Horsepower Meaning
/ˈhɔɹsˌpaʊɚ/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounPower derived from the motion of a horse.
nounA nonmetric unit of power with various definitions, commonly the mechanical horsepower, approximately equal to 745.7 watts.
Sentence Examples
My car is deficient in horsepower.
The horsepower of a car matters not, with a donkey in control.
This car has more than a hundred horsepower.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The engine produces 300 ____, making the car very fast.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The car's engine generates over 400 ____, making it extremely fast and powerful.
Word Origin & History
From horse + power: the unit was originally defined as the amount of power that a horse could provide. Both non-metric and metric units of power were derived from effectively identical measurements of the power a draught horse could sustain over several hours, with the difference in watts solely due to different rounding errors to express that power in round numbers in the original non-SI units (ft·lbf/min and kgf⋅m/s respectively).
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Shillibeer's bus came in 1829 drawn by three horses. Later two horses were found sufficient to pull these closed wagonettes, which eventually had outside seats, and later on the substitution of a motor for horsepower."
— 1971, Gwen White, Antique Toys And Their Background, page 86:
"The Sun Inn is an attractive black-and-white building, and has an old mounting block outside as a reminder of the days when horsepower meant four legs and a saddle."
— 1980, AA Book of British Villages, Drive Publications Ltd, page 150:
"The wheel was to have been turned by horsepower, but it was adapted to be driven by a mill-wheel on the river Derwent […]"
— 2003, Gavin Weightman, What the Industrial Revolution Did for Us, page 57:
"Equally I can stand in a station like Lucerne in Switzerland, and watch with ill-concealed admiration the majestic entry of one of the latest Gotthard "Ae 6/6" electrics, packing 6,000 horsepower within its 60 ft. of length and 121 tons of weight, with its sleek dark green sides and handsome stainless steel bands and front wings."
— 1955 April, Cecil J. Allen, “British Locomotive Practice and Performance”, in Railway Magazine, page 261:
"As Quincy recovered from our one-block adrenaline burst, I gunned all 700 horsepower once more. Even with the pedal to the metal, the Exelero's sheer bulk caused a multisecond lag from the twin-turbo-charged V12's wind-up to actual launch."
— 2007 January 24, Sue Callaway, “Jonesing for a Maybach”, in CNN:
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CEFR Practice Quiz
The engine produces 300 ____, making the car very fast.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The car's engine generates over 400 ____, making it extremely fast and powerful.