tractor

noun

trac·​tor ˈtrak-tər 

1

a

: a 4-wheeled or tracklaying automotive vehicle used especially for drawing farm equipment

b

: a smaller 2-wheeled apparatus controlled through handlebars by a walking operator

c

: truck entry 1 sense 1b

2

: an airplane having the propeller forward of the main supporting surfaces

Illustration of tractor

• tractor 1a

Examples of tractor in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Some large compute jobs, including training runs for new AI models, are like tractors that move slowly and take up multiple lanes. — Silvia Console Battilana, Forbes.com, 21 July 2026

The foreign minister told me that in the southern Mexican city of Tuxtla Gutiérrez, about 140 miles from the nearest Mexico-Guatemala border crossing, a tractor-trailer had crashed while carrying more than 160 Guatemalan migrants. — Ken Salazar, Time, 20 July 2026

At times, on her way to an event, Machado found heavy machinery tearing up the ground, or tractors piling soil in the road. — Stephania Taladrid, New Yorker, 20 July 2026

Illinois farmers now have the right to repair their own tractors, combines and spreaders. — Chicago Tribune, 20 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, from Latin trahere

First Known Use

1900, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing tractor

• tractor-trailer

Rhymes for tractor

• acter
• actor
• factor
• attractor
• cofactor
• compactor
• contactor
• contractor
• distractor
• extractor
• impactor
• protractor

Kids Definition

tractor

noun

trac·​tor ˈtrak-tər 

1

: a vehicle that has large rear wheels or moves on tracks and is used especially for pulling farm implements

2

: a short truck with no body used in combination with a trailer for hauling freight

Medical Definition

tractor

noun

trac·​tor ˈtrak-tər 

: an instrument used to exert traction on a body part or tissue (as in surgical procedures)

a urethral tractor