hot rod

¹

noun

, Slang.

1. an automobile specially built or altered for fast acceleration and increased speed.

hot-rod

²

[ hot-rod ]

verb (used without object)

, hot-rod·ded, hot-rod·ding.

1. to drive a hot rod.
2. to drive very fast.

verb (used with object)

, hot-rod·ded, hot-rod·ding.

1. to drive (a vehicle) very fast.
2. to adapt (a vehicle or its engine) for increased speed.

hot rod

noun

1. a car with an engine that has been radically modified to produce increased power

Word History and Origins

Origin of hot rod¹

An Americanism dating back to 1940–45

Origin of hot rod²

First recorded in 1945–50

Idioms and Phrases

An automobile modified to increase its speed and acceleration, as in Kids love to tinker with cars and try to convert them into hot rods . [Mid-1900s] Also see hopped up .

Example Sentences

Brand advertisers and agency execs Digiday spoke to for this story said Facebook is pushing advertisers to get on board with the server-side tracking tech, selling it as the shiny, new measurement data hot rod they ought to be driving.

From Digiday

Although they called themselves “that little ol’ band from Texas,” ZZ Top grew into an international sensation by the early 1980s, launched to fame in part by extravagant tours and MTV music videos filled with hot rods and strutting young women.

From Washington Post

This four-door sedan looks like a hot rod, sounds like a muscle car and drives like a high-performance speedster.

From Washington Blade

He says that if you had a hot rod in Detroit in 1963, you had to have a Hurst shifter or you were nowhere.

From The Daily Beast

And I wouldn't want curators choosing Surgeon of the Year, or Top Hot Rod 2012.

From The Daily Beast

These vintage hot rod racers were catnip to testosterone-pumped owner pilots.

From The Daily Beast

Are we about to see a revisionist pushback on how Hot Rod has already been hanged, drawn, and quartered?

From The Daily Beast

However, he has managed to leave Project Hot Rod operational while unattended.

From Project Gutenberg

"Hot Rod has been sabotaged," a frantic voice on the other end of the beam shouted in his ear without formalities.

From Project Gutenberg

The nearly four million pound mass of Hot Rod was slowly being left behind.

From Project Gutenberg

Hot Rod rolled on its center of gravity, and its beam-director mirror swung in a huge arc.

From Project Gutenberg

Hot Rod pressures insufficient to achieve your present apparent acceleration.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• stock car