gurney

noun

gur·​ney ˈgər-nē How to pronounce gurney (audio)
plural gurneys
: a wheeled cot or stretcher

Examples of gurney 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.
According to the outlet, Long laid on a gurney and never spoke or opened his eyes. Erica Marrison, PEOPLE, 3 Nov. 2025 When the curtains in the media witness room open to the death chamber, the person being executed is already strapped to the gurney and the intravenous lines to deliver the fatal chemicals are already inserted into that person's body. Evan Mealins, Nashville Tennessean, 31 Oct. 2025 Wind howls as one of the daughters' body rocks on a gurney, her family lighting candles as a rabbi screams scripture with water crashing in a nearby tub. Michael Lee Simpson, Entertainment Weekly, 29 Oct. 2025 The woman’s husband, a scrawny man in a shabby work uniform, smelling of sewage, drooped behind the gurney. Literary Hub, 23 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for gurney

Word History

Etymology

probably ultimately from Gurney cab type of horse-drawn cab with a rear entrance, from J. Theodore Gurney, who patented such a cab in Boston in 1883

First Known Use

1939, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of gurney was in 1939

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Cite this Entry

“Gurney.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gurney. Accessed 12 Nov. 2025.

Medical Definition

gurney

noun
gur·​ney ˈgər-nē How to pronounce gurney (audio)
plural gurneys
: a wheeled cot or stretcher
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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