Locomotor

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Pertaining to the mechanisms that enable movement, this term encompasses both biological and mechanical systems involved in locomotion, highlighting mobility features in living organisms and machines
2. This adjective refers to the functions related to movement, including actions associated with creature locomotion and mechanical mobility systems, emphasizing the ability to move
3. Relating to the systems that facilitate movement, this term covers aspects of biological mobility in animals and the operational mechanics of machines designed for transport

Etymology: Its first half is the Latin "locus," meaning "place," and its second half comes from "motor," the Latin for "mover," itself from "movere," "to move." Put together, the word literally describes something that moves from place to place. The "locus" in English words like "location" and "local" shares this root. Modern English uses the adjective mostly in medicine, where "locomotor" describes the muscles, bones, and nerves that make bodily movement possible. The older medical phrase "locomotor ataxia" named a condition in which a person loses coordination in the legs and walks unsteadily, a sense that shows how closely the word was tied to the act of getting around.

Synonyms: motor, mobile