Turbo

How to spell turbo

5 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce turbo

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does turbo mean?

1. nounA turbocharger, a device that boosts an engine's power by forcing in extra compressed air.

Turbo in a sentence

• The mechanic explained that the turbo had failed and needed replacing.

• This small hatchback feels surprisingly quick because of its turbo.

Where does turbo come from?

Language of origin: Latin

The word comes directly from the Latin turbo, which named a whirlwind, a spinning top, or anything that whirls and twists. That noun was closely tied to the verb turbare, meaning 'to throw into confusion' or 'to stir up', the same root that gives English 'disturb' and 'turbulent'. In the nineteenth century engineers revived the Latin word in 'turbine', a wheel driven by a stream of fluid or gas spinning rapidly around an axis. From there 'turbo' was clipped off as a handy prefix and standalone term, and in the twentieth century it became the everyday short form of 'turbocharger', a device that uses spinning exhaust gases to force more air into an engine. Because the spelling is short and phonetic, the only thing worth remembering is that it ends in a plain -o, not -oe or -ow.

How the word is built

• turbo (from Latin turbo: whirlwind, spinning top), used as a shortened form of turbocharger/turbine