turbo

turbo — noun

1. a device made of a small turbine that uses the hot gases leaving an engine to sp

1.nounB2
Definition

a device made of a small turbine that uses the hot gases leaving an engine to spin. As the turbine spins, it forces extra air into the engine, which helps the fuel burn more strongly and creates more power. Often called a turbo for short.

Example

Pim took his car to the garage because the turbo was making a strange whistling noise.

the turbo + was making + noise — detecting a fault

A turbo forces extra air into the engine, which lets the fuel burn more completely.

Common collocations
  • install a turbo
  • upgrade the turbo
  • twin turbo
  • blown turbo
  • turbo kicks in
Synonyms
  • turbocharger

    the full-length formal term; turbo is the everyday clipping

  • supercharger

    also forces air into an engine, but is driven by a belt from the engine's crankshaft, not by exhaust gases

Usage Note

In casual conversation, drivers and mechanics almost always say turbo instead of the full word turbocharger. The longer form appears mainly in technical manuals and official product names.

Common Mistakes

He wants to turbo his car.
He wants to install a turbo on his car.
'turbo' is a noun, not a verb; use 'turbocharge' or 'install a turbo' instead.

2. a car or other vehicle that has a turbocharger fitted to its engine, so that it

2.nounB2
Definition

a car or other vehicle that has a turbocharger fitted to its engine, so that it can go faster or pull more weight more easily than a normal vehicle of the same size.

Example

Noa saved for two years to buy a red turbo with leather seats.

a + [colour] + turbo — describing a vehicle

Second-hand turbos can be expensive to maintain if the previous owner drove them hard.

Common collocations
  • drive a turbo
  • own a turbo
  • second-hand turbo
  • diesel turbo
  • red turbo
Synonyms
  • turbocharged car

    more formal and explicit; turbo alone is the casual shortening

  • performance car

    broader category — includes cars with other power-boosting technology, not just turbochargers

Usage Note

Frequently used with colour or modifier: a red turbo, a diesel turbo, a fast turbo. The vehicle type is usually clear from context, so the word alone stands for the whole car.

Common Mistakes

I bought a turbo sedan from the dealer.
I bought a turbo from the dealer.
when the context is clear, just say 'turbo'; the word already implies a vehicle.

turbo — adjective

turbo — combining form

Word family

  • turbocharge
    verbC1
  • turbocharged
    adjectiveB2
  • turbocharger
    nounB2
  • turbofan
    nounC1
  • turbojet
    nounC1
  • turboprop
    nounC1
  • turboshaft
    nounC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Turbocharger is the full technical name for the device; turbo is simply its everyday short form, used by drivers and mechanics. A supercharger performs a similar job — forcing extra air into an engine — but is driven by a belt from the engine's crankshaft rather than by exhaust gases, which means it works instantly but uses some of the engine's own power. A turbine is the general rotating component found inside a turbocharger, but the word turbine alone refers to any wheel spun by gas, steam, or water, not specifically to the engine-boosting device. So while 'my turbo needs replacing' clearly means the whole turbocharger unit, 'the turbine is damaged' would sound odd outside an engineering workshop.

turbochargersuperchargerturbine ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • turbo engine
  • turbo diesel
  • turbo model
  • turbo version
  • turbo option
  • turbo car

Phrases

  • with a turbo
  • fitted with a turbo

Prepositions

  • turbo in [a car/engine]
  • turbo on [an engine]

Etymology

LatinEnglish

The word turbo began as a short form of turbocharger, which appeared in the 1930s from turbo- (from Latin turbo, 'spinning top' or 'whirlwind') + charger (something that fills or supplies). The Latin root turbo originally meant 'that which spins,' and already gave English the word turbine (a spinning wheel that extracts energy from a moving fluid). By the 1970s, car enthusiasts had clipped turbocharger to turbo in casual speech, and the shortened form soon appeared in advertising and car model names. Today turbo also works as an adjective and as a technical prefix in engineering compounds.