van

1 of 4

noun (1)

1
a
: a usually enclosed wagon or motortruck used for transportation of goods or animals
b
: a multipurpose enclosed motor vehicle having a boxlike shape, rear or side doors, and side panels often with windows
c
: a detachable passenger cabin transportable by aircraft or truck
2
chiefly British : an enclosed railroad freight or baggage car

van

2 of 4

verb

vanned; vanning

transitive verb

: to transport by van

van

3 of 4

noun (2)

van

4 of 4

noun (3)

1
dialectal, England : a winnowing device (such as a fan)
2

Examples of van in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Art loaded up one of Frank’s vans with paintings and drove straight from Chicago to Miami. Jason Kersten, Rolling Stone, 23 Mar. 2024 After sedating the 12-foot, 750-pound reptile, officers taped Albert's mouth and drove away with him in the back of a van. Eric Lagatta, USA TODAY, 21 Mar. 2024 Purpose: Capital improvement projects, maintenance, heating/air conditioning systems, technology, bus/van/truck purchases. Sue Kiesewetter, The Enquirer, 17 Mar. 2024 Nine people were killed and one other person was injured on March 8, 2024 in a crash involving a semi-truck and a passenger van in Clark County, according to the Clark County Sheriff's Office. Alex Groth, Journal Sentinel, 14 Mar. 2024 The European Union is keen on transitioning to electric vehicles, proposing to go zero-emissions for all new cars and vans by 2035. Rob Nikolewski, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Mar. 2024 The toddler was thrown from the van when the crash occurred, Jahn told the Sentinel. Abigail Adams, Peoplemag, 11 Mar. 2024 Vitter ignored the questions and climbed inside his family’s van, where his wife was waiting. Scott Wartman, The Enquirer, 12 Mar. 2024 The van, also on its side on the shoulder of the road, appeared to have been charred by fire. Drew Dawson, Journal Sentinel, 9 Mar. 2024
Verb
Many Del Mar trainers stable and train their horses at San Luis Rey Downs, which can handle up to 500 horses, and van them to the track for races. Bill Center, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 Mar. 2024 This little Sundance-darling-that-could is as quirky and charming as the yellow Volkswagon van the Hoovers use for their road trip to California. Andrew Walsh, EW.com, 27 Nov. 2023 Natalee Holloway's Mom Reveals How Joran van der Sloot Killed Her Daughter in 2005 (Exclusive) Van der Sloot, 36, was temporarily extradited to Alabama in June to face extortion and wire fraud charges in a case connected to Natalee’s 2005 disappearance. Emily Palmer, Peoplemag, 31 Oct. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'van.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

short for caravan entry 1

Noun (2)

by shortening

Noun (3)

Middle English, borrowed from Anglo-French, going back to Latin vannus, of uncertain origin

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1829, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1840, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

1607, in the meaning defined above

Noun (3)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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

Dictionary Entries Near van

Cite this Entry

“Van.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/van. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

van

1 of 2 noun

van

2 of 2 noun
1
: a usually closed wagon or truck for transporting goods or animals
2
: an enclosed motor vehicle shaped like a box that is used for a variety of purposes and has rear or side doors and side panels often with windows
Etymology

Noun

a shortened form of vanguard

Noun

a shortened form of caravan "vehicle"

More from Merriam-Webster on van

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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