gurney

noun

gur·​ney ˈgər-nē 

plural gurneys

: a wheeled cot or stretcher

Examples of gurney in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Now, the defining image of the death penalty in 2026 is a woman strapped to a gurney, in unbearable agony, being tortured by prison officials tasked with killing her but unable to do so. — Maya Foa, Chicago Tribune, 8 Oct. 2026

Two years ago, the state of Alabama decided to start killing people on death row by asphyxiation, via nitrogen gas fed into the lungs until the masked person strapped to the gurney expires. — Doreen St. Félix, New Yorker, 3 Oct. 2026

Video obtained by the Daily News shows police assisting EMS in lifting the wounded detective off the street, where blood can be seen pooling along the curb, and onto a gurney. — Nicholas Williams, New York Daily News, 3 Oct. 2026

In another, a prisoner, already strapped to the gurney, urged the team to try a vein near his hand. — New York Times, 3 Oct. 2026

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

Rhymes for gurney

• burnie
• journey
• tourney
• attorney
• mcburney

Medical Definition

gurney

noun

gur·​ney ˈgər-nē 

plural gurneys

: a wheeled cot or stretcher