car

1 of 2

noun

ˈkär How to pronounce car (audio)
 dialectal also  ˈkȯr,
ˈkyär
1
: a vehicle moving on wheels: such as
a
archaic : carriage, chariot
b
: a vehicle designed to move on rails (as of a railroad)
The train has 20 cars.
c
: automobile
traveled to Boston by car
2
: the passenger compartment of an elevator
3
: the part of an airship or balloon that carries the passengers and cargo

CAR

2 of 2

abbreviation

civil air regulations

Examples of car in a Sentence

Noun I'll wait in the car. He got into the car and drove away. She bought a new car.
Recent Examples on the Web
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Noun
The car has 168,000 miles on it, and everything mechanical is original. David Krumboltz, The Mercury News, 10 Nov. 2024 There was some disagreement over how forcefully the victim contacted Morrow’s car during the incident. Kyle Newman, The Denver Post, 10 Nov. 2024 Money & Markets The 10 best SUVs to buy right now, according to Consumer Reports Consumer Reports tested more than 150 SUVs to make its recommendations By Start Slideshow Americans love their SUVs, which make up the majority of new car purchases in the country. Ben Kesslen, Quartz, 10 Nov. 2024 Misty and Kasey have since asked the court permission to sell properties, including houses in Jeffersonville and Florida, and a barn where Jamey stored a car collection, as soon as possible. Leo Bertucci, The Courier-Journal, 31 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for car 

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English carre "cart, wagon, small cartload," borrowed from Anglo-French carre, charre, going back to Late Latin carra, plural of carrum "vehicle, cart," going back to Latin, neuter variant of carrus "a kind of Gaulish wagon," borrowed from the Gaulish outcome of Celtic *kr̥s-o-, whence also Old Irish carr "cart, wagon," Welsh car "vehicle" — more at current entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of car was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near car

Cite this Entry

“Car.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/car. Accessed 18 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

car

noun
1
: a vehicle (as an automobile or part of a passenger train) moving on wheels
2
: the passenger compartment of an elevator
3
: the part of a balloon or an airship that carries the passengers and equipment

More from Merriam-Webster on car

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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