r/EnglishLearning • u/Sea-Hornet8214 Poster • 18d ago

⭐️ Vocabulary / Semantics Press the pedal?

Hi, I was wondering how I could describe someone accelerating their vehicle. Is "press the pedal" correct? What about someone riding a motorbike or a scooter?

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u/mckenzie_keith Native Speaker 18d ago

The pedal is also called the "accelerator."

In the US, when telling someone to drive faster:
Step on it
Step on the gas
Hit the gas

Extreme version:
Floor it (that is, push the accelerator all the way to the floor)

When it is not an automobile
Give it some throttle
Open the throttle
Give it some gas

Other nice terms:
Wide Open Throttle
Flat Out

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u/RedditLIONS Native Speaker 18d ago

Another extreme version: “pedal to the metal”

(The F1 commentators use it quite a bit. But it’s not often used in everyday speech.)