# Turbo

/ˈtɝboʊ/ (US) · /tˈɜːbəʊ/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/turbo
Updated: 2026-08-15

## Senses

### 1. engine part

noun · CEFR B2 · Informal

a part in a car engine that makes it more powerful and faster.

For teachers: a clipping of turbocharger; a device that increases an internal combustion engine's efficiency and power by forcing extra air into the combustion chamber.

- The mechanic told me that the turbo in my car needs to be replaced.
- The rally car's turbo whistled loudly as the driver accelerated out of the hairpin turn, providing the necessary boost to maintain speed.

### 2. very fast or powerful

adjective · CEFR B2

describing something that is much faster or more powerful than usual.

For teachers: relating to or equipped with a turbocharger; by extension, denoting significantly increased speed or performance.

- The new gaming laptop has a turbo mode for better performance.
- The company entered a turbo growth phase after the new CEO implemented a series of aggressive market expansion strategies.

### 3. extreme or 'super'

adjective · CEFR C1 · Slang · Informal

used to mean 'very' or 'extremely' when describing a quality.

For teachers: an intensifier used to denote an extreme or exaggerated degree of a qualitative attribute.

- That new action movie was turbo weird, but I actually liked it.
- The atmosphere at the stadium became turbo charged once the home team scored the equalizing goal in the final minute.

### 4. to move or act fast

verb · CEFR C2 · Informal · Technical

to move very quickly or to use a special fast setting.

For teachers: to move with great speed or to operate a device using an autofire or boost function.

- He managed to turbo through his homework so he could go outside.
- The player had to turbo the buttons to defeat the final boss in the arcade game.

## Examples

- I need a turbo boost to finish this project.
- The new software update includes a turbo mode that processes large video files in half the time.
- The processor automatically enters a turbo state when demanding applications require a temporary burst of computational power beyond its base clock frequency.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.