motorless

motorless — adjective

  • motorlesspositive
  • more motorlesscomparative
  • most motorlesssuperlative

1. describes a vehicle, machine, or device that has no motor or engine and is moved

1.adjectiveB2
Definition

describes a vehicle, machine, or device that has no motor or engine and is moved by human strength, wind, or other natural forces instead

Example

Kofi rowed his motorless boat across the calm lake at dawn.

attributive: motorless + boat

Motorless gliders use warm air currents to stay high in the sky for hours.

subject: Motorless + gliders

Common collocations
  • motorless boat
  • motorless glider
  • motorless vehicle
  • motorless wheelchair
  • motorless lawn mower
Synonyms
  • unpowered

    more general — can refer to anything without its own power source; 'motorless' specifically means no motor

  • non-motorised

    more formal and common in British English; used especially for vehicles

  • manual

    describes devices operated by hand, often overlapping with 'motorless' but not identical

Antonyms
  • motorised

    fitted with a motor or engine

  • powered

    having any type of power source including a motor

Grammar Patterns

motorless + noun

be + motorless

Usage Note

Frequently used attributively before nouns describing vehicles or equipment designed without a motor.

Common Mistakes

The machine is motorless now' (when the motor is just turned off).
The machine is motorless' (when it has no motor at all).
'Motorless' describes a built-in lack of a motor, not a temporary state.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

All three words describe things that work without a motor or engine, but with different emphasis. Unpowered is the broadest term, covering anything that lacks its own power source — a kite, a sailboat, or a hand-cranked tool. Non-motorised is more specific and formal, used chiefly for vehicles (bicycles, rowboats, horse-drawn carts) especially in regulations and official documents. Manual narrows the focus to devices operated directly by hand rather than by any power source, motorised or otherwise — a manual wheelchair, a manual typewriter, a hand drill. A manual wheelchair is always motorless, but a motorless glider is not manual. Use unpowered for general descriptions, non-motorised for transport contexts, and manual when hand operation is the key feature.

unpowered ↗non-motorised ↗manual ↗

Etymology

LatinEnglish

Formed by adding the suffix '-less' (meaning 'without') to the noun 'motor', which comes from Latin 'motor' meaning 'a mover'. The word 'motorless' has been used since the late 19th century, soon after motorised vehicles became common.