five-speed

[ fahyv-speed ]

noun

1. (in an automotive vehicle or bicycle) a transmission or system of gears having five forward gear ratios.
2. an automotive vehicle or bicycle having such a transmission or system of gears.

adjective

1. having five forward gear ratios.

Word History and Origins

Origin of five-speed¹

First recorded in 1900–05

Example Sentences

The sanctioning body moved to an independent rear suspension, rack-and-pinion steering, a five-speed sequential shifter, a transaxle, 19-inch wheels and a center hub instead of lug nuts.

From Washington Times

The sanctioning body moved to an independent rear suspension, rack-and-pinion steering, a five-speed sequential shifter, a transaxle, 19-inch wheels and a center hub instead of lug nuts.

From Seattle Times

Not a big one, but you didn’t need a big one back then to buy a car like that: a zippy little two-liter, five-speed convertible that looks like an MGB but — pedants will tell you — actually predates that British model.

From Washington Post

In a separate review, it noted the car’s “finely balanced handling, its superb five-speed gearbox and its jewel-like twin-cam, sixteen-valve, four-cylinder engine.”

From New York Times

David Silberkleit, the aforementioned Bugeye Guy, had made roughly 150 nonoriginal modifications meant to keep Ducky rolling toward Washington, including a Ford-sourced five-speed gearbox for more relaxed cruising, disc brakes all around, electronic ignition, an alternator and — crucially — a beefy aluminum radiator with six-bladed fan.

From New York Times