speedometer

noun

speed·​om·​e·​ter spi-ˈdä-mə-tər 

1

: an instrument for indicating speed : tachometer

2

: an instrument for indicating distance traversed as well as speed of travel

also : odometer

Examples of speedometer in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The speedometer must have ticked up from zero to a speed impermissible in Lusaka morning traffic jams. —Literary Hub, 27 Mar. 2026

The study also concluded that frozen speedometers taken from vehicles involved in head-on crashes were more accurate than those taken from cars where the crash occurred at an angle. —Annie Vainshtein, San Francisco Chronicle, 26 Mar. 2026

Blaming data analysis for high rent in a market with a 100,000-unit deficit is like blaming the speedometer for a speeding car. —Albert R. Wynn, Baltimore Sun, 12 Mar. 2026

Long before Brent Headrick lit up radar guns with his left arm, the Yankees reliever sent speedometer needles flying with a step of his right foot. —Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 11 Mar. 2026

Word History

Etymology

speed entry 1 + -o- + -meter

First Known Use

1903, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for speedometer

• barometer
• bolometer
• chronometer
• geometer
• hydrometer
• hygrometer
• kilometer
• micrometer
• odometer
• photometer
• psychrometer
• pycnometer

Kids Definition

speedometer

noun

speed·​om·​e·​ter spi-ˈdäm-ət-ər 

1

: an instrument that measures speed

2

: an instrument that both measures speed and records distance traveled