Meanings
- nauticalOf the movement of a locomotive or a watercraft: by means of the power of its own engines (originally steam engines), rather than pulled or pushed by another vehicle.
By Tuesday evening the track had been cleared to the three snowbound engines, and the following day, under their own steam, they were moved away; the business of relighting their fires and raising steam in such conditions is better imagined than described.
1941 April, “Notes and News: Railwaymen and Snow”, in The Railway Magazine, London: Tothill Press, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 1781 more example
Now the tug no longer moved under her own steam, nor had it been since coming alongside the wall of the central pier. For all vessels must be towed through the lock basins, and towed not by other craft, but by electric locomotives that run alongside, on top of the concrete walls.
1915, Victor Appleton [pseudonym], “Almost an Accident”, in The Moving Picture Boys at Panama: Or Stirring Adventures along the Grand Canal, New York, N.Y.: Grosset & Dunlap, →OCLC, page 106 - figurativelyidiomaticUsing one's own resources; independently, unaided.
"People come at their own risk, at their own expense, under their own steam," said Mhairi McKenzie-Robinson, chief administrator of the Fringe [Edinburgh Fringe Festival].
1987 August 18, “At the Fringe in Edinburgh, theater in crypt and streets”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 08 Jan 2021, section C, page 17, columns 1–21 more example
After the event, [Steve] Jobs even briefly joined the media where Apple's new product line was being shown. He walked under his own steam, of course, easily and without any apparent discomfort. […] Whether Jobs's health is in decline or not, it's undeniable that the past five years have been the most fertile of his magnificent career.
2008 September 9, Josh Quittner, “Steve Jobs: Not Dead Yet”, in Time, New York, N.Y.: Time Warner Publishing, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 10 Sep 2008 - figurativelyidiomaticAt one's own initiative; of one's own accord, unbidden, unprompted.
I'd been wanting her to go for a long, long time, hoping she'd get up the gumption to do it under her own steam so I wouldn't have to make a scene about it.
1980, Charlotte Vale Allen, Promises, Norwalk, Conn.: Island Nation Press, published 1999, →ISBN, page 265
Synonyms & antonyms
Origin
A reference to the operation of a steam engine: see sense 1.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Czech na vlastní pěst, na vlastní pěst
- na vlastní pěstof a locomotive or a watercraft: by means of the power of its own engines
- na vlastní pěstusing one’s own resources — see also independently, unaided
Finnish omin voimin, omin avuin
- omin voiminof a locomotive or a watercraft: by means of the power of its own engines
- omin avuinusing one’s own resources — see also independently, unaided
- omin voiminusing one’s own resources — see also independently, unaided
French par ses propres moyens
- par ses propres moyensusing one’s own resources — see also independently, unaided
Russian своим ходом, своими силами
- своим ходом (svoim xodom)of a locomotive or a watercraft: by means of the power of its own engines
- своими силами (svoimi silami)using one’s own resources — see also independently, unaided
- своим ходом (svoim xodom)using one’s own resources — see also independently, unaided
Spanish por sus propios medios, por sus propios medios
- por sus propios mediosof a locomotive or a watercraft: by means of the power of its own engines
- por sus propios mediosat one’s own initiative — see also unbidden, unprompted
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with under one's own steam
Cite this entry
under one's own steam. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/under%20one's%20own%20steam
“under one's own steam.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/under%20one's%20own%20steam. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “under one's own steam,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/under%20one's%20own%20steam.
Source: under one's own steam on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.