/ rev; NAmE / verb , noun
■ verb
( -vv- ) rev (sth) (up) when you rev an engine or it revs , it runs quickly :
[ vn ]
The taxi driver revved up his engine.
[ v ]
I could hear the car revving outside.
■ noun
( informal ) a complete turn of an engine, used when talking about an engine's speed
SYN revolution :
4 000 revs per minute
The needle on the rev counter soared.
••
WORD ORIGIN
early 20th cent.: abbreviation of revolution .