car

noun \ ˈkär , dialectal also ˈkȯr , ˈkyär \

Updated on: 15 May 2018

Definition of car

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

See car defined for English-language learners

See car defined for kids

Examples of car in a Sentence

I'll wait in the car.
He got into the car and drove away.
She bought a new car.

Recent Examples of car from the Web

The car, registered to the Lindquists, had been abandoned and no one was hurt.

— kenneth r. gosselin, courant.com, "Hartford Woman Arrested On Murder, Arson Charges In Three Deaths Tied To Griswold Fire," 13 May 2018
Its Potrero Hill neighborhood was a bustling city landscape with cars, trucks, taxis on the streets, people passing on the sidewalks, walking in and out of shops, restaurants, markets, and bars — lots of bars.

— gary kamiya, San Francisco Chronicle, "In the depths of the Depression, SF had the best ballpark in the country," 12 May 2018
Public mourning also has re-emerged with the widespread acceptance of roadside shrines, ghost bikes (white bikes placed on the roadside where a cyclist died), memorial vinyl decals for the back windows of cars, and memorial tattoos.

— david sloane, BostonGlobe.com, "Is the cemetery dead?," 12 May 2018
How about a Southern California beach bash that will focus on three of his greatest passions — music, food and cars?

— george varga, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Sammy Hagar, at 70, still can't drive 55. Hard-rock vet to debut SoCal music, food and car festival in October," 12 May 2018
Engineers built its arterials to transport cars, and quickly.

— aarian marshall, WIRED, "Save Lives With Smarter, Slower Streets—Not Self-Driving Cars," 11 May 2018
When the single national standard was adopted six years ago, cars, which get better mileage than trucks and SUVs, made up just under half of U.S. new vehicle sales.

— tom krisher and ken thomas, chicagotribune.com, "Trump tells world's top automakers to build more cars in U.S.," 11 May 2018
The red 1963 coupe, believed to be the most original of the handful of surviving cars, went for $718,750 at a Guernsey’s auction event in New York City on Thursday night.

— Fox News, "Rare Cheetah sports car sold for record price," 11 May 2018
The lava that has shot hundreds of feet into the air and oozed from the fissures has swallowed cars, destroyed about 25 dozen homes, and forced around 2,000 residents to flee.

— umair irfan, Vox, "Volcanoes are awe-inspiring. Here are 7 things to know about them.," 11 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'car.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of car

Middle English carre, from Anglo-French, from Latin carra, plural of carrum, alteration of carrus, of Celt origin; akin to Old Irish & Middle Welsh carr vehicle; akin to Latin currere to run

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year