English

car

/kɑː/
A wheeled vehicle that moves independently, with at least three wheels, powered mechanically, steered by a driver and mostly for personal transportation but relatively smaller than a truck/lorry and a bus.

    Etymology graph

    • inherited
    • borrowed
    • derived
    • parts
    • meaning component
    • sound component
    • related
    React Flow

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    Origin

    Etymology 1

    Inherited from Middle English carre, borrowed from Anglo-Norman carre, from Old Northern French (compare Old French char), from Latin carrus (“two-wheeled baggage wagon”), from Gaulish *karros, from Proto-Celtic *karros (“wagon”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱr̥sós (“vehicle”). Doublet of carrus and horse.

    Etymology 2

    Acronym of contents of the address part of register number. Note that it was based on original hardware and has no meaning today.

    From Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.

    Lineage

    • inheritedMiddle Englishcarre
      • borrowedAnglo-Normancarre
        • inheritedLatincarrus “four-wheeled baggage wagon”
          • borrowedGaulish*karros
            • inheritedProto-Celtic*karros “wagon”
              • inheritedProto-Indo-European*ḱr̥sós
                • partProto-Indo-European*ḱers- “to run”
                • partProto-Indo-European*-ós
                  • partProto-Indo-European*-os
    • derivedEnglishcontents of the address part of register number

    Related: English horse (doublet), English carrus (doublet), Old French char

    Words built on it: car show

    Sources