gears

1. 1
   noun

   Plural of gear.

   Mechanics inspected the worn gears inside the old gearbox.

   The cyclist switched gears as the road grew steeper.

   Note

   The plural mostly belongs to machinery: toothed wheels that mesh and pass motion along, and the ratios a driver or cyclist selects. Equipment does not take it. Climbers pack their gear, never their gears, because that meaning is a mass noun. Clothing is the one non-mechanical meaning that can be counted, and an older meaning of household goods has dropped out of use.

2. 2
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present of gear.

   The factory gears production to meet seasonal demand.

   The coach gears every practice around the team's next opponent.

   Note

   This form shares its spelling with the plural noun, and only position tells them apart. After a singular subject it is a verb (the plant gears its output to demand), and after an article it is a noun (the gears jammed). The design meaning usually names a target with to or for. The same form also carries the verb's other jobs: fitting a machine with gears, dressing or harnessing, and borrowing money to invest.

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