horseless carriage

[hawrs-lis]

noun

1. an automobile.

   The horse and buggy were eventually replaced by the horseless carriage.

Word History and Origins

Origin of horseless carriage¹

First recorded in 1890–95

Example Sentences

A great many investors backed the wrong horseless carriages around a century ago and lost their money.

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Horse-drawn carriages are still everywhere, but there are also noisy horseless carriages, an invention so new there’s only recently a word for them: automobiles.

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So he decided to get into the “horseless carriage” business.

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Benjamin argues that “electric bike” is akin to “horseless carriage,” a transitional term for a novel technology that will almost certainly evolve into something else.

Read more on Seattle Times

Cars that burn alternative fuels — remember diesels converted to burn used French-fry oil? — have been around since the earliest days of horseless carriages.

Read more on New York Times