flatbed

1 of 2

adjective

flat·​bed ˈflat-ˌbed How to pronounce flatbed (audio)
: having a horizontal bed on which the work rests
a flatbed printing press
a flatbed scanner

flatbed

2 of 2

noun

: a motortruck or trailer with a body in the form of a platform or shallow box

Examples of flatbed in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Adjective
Related article Recovery of DC jet wreckage begins as investigators review new information The wreckage was transferred, one piece at a time, from a barge to a flatbed truck parked only a couple of hundred feet from the airport’s main runway. Andy Rose, CNN, 5 Feb. 2025 In the decades before editing software, this was a laborious task that required splicing frames and repeatedly running footage through big Steenbeck flatbed machines. Michael Schulman, The New Yorker, 20 Jan. 2025
Noun
Dolly stayed regional—she got certified in manual, doubles, triples, and hazmat, and worked fifteen-hour days delivering construction materials on a flatbed to east Texas. Emily Gogolak, Harper's Magazine, 2 Feb. 2024 Big black letters on either side of the flatbed proclaimed ART IS … O’Grady, then 48, had decided to become an artist just six years before, after two marriages, an attempt at a novel, and stints as a translator and rock critic. Jillian Steinhauer, Vulture, 13 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for flatbed 

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1892, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1944, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of flatbed was in 1892

Dictionary Entries Near flatbed

Cite this Entry

“Flatbed.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/flatbed. Accessed 20 Feb. 2025.

Kids Definition

flatbed

1 of 2 adjective
flat·​bed ˈflat-ˌbed How to pronounce flatbed (audio)
: having a horizontal bed on which material rests
a flatbed scanner

flatbed

2 of 2 noun
: a truck or trailer with a body in the form of a platform or shallow box

More from Merriam-Webster on flatbed

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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