ambulance
Americannoun
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a specially equipped motor vehicle, airplane, ship, etc., for carrying sick or injured people, usually to a hospital.
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(formerly) a field hospital.
noun
Etymology
Origin of ambulance
1800–10; < French, equivalent to ( hôpital ) ambul ( ant ) walking (hospital) + -ance -ance. See ambulant
Explanation
An ambulance is an emergency vehicle that transports people to the hospital in emergencies. If you see that someone's been injured in a car accident, it's a good idea to call an ambulance. People who are terribly sick, or who are unexpectedly hurt or injured, often need to get to a hospital quickly, and this is what an ambulance is for. As the patient is driven to a hospital, with the ambulance's lights flashing and siren sounding, he or she is often treated by an emergency medical technician. The word comes from the French phrase hôpital ambulant, or "walking hospital," from the Latin ambulare, "to walk."
Vocabulary lists containing ambulance
Walk the Walk: Amb
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English Words Derived from French, List 2
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National Nurses Week: Tasks and Equipment
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
During a 2024 nationwide network outage for AT&T, which operates the FirstNet service, ambulance crews couldn’t transmit electronic medical records to hospitals.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026
Police were called by the ambulance service on 27 March 2022 after she collapsed at the Burntwood property, with her patents arrested the following day, the Staffordshire force said.
From BBC • Apr. 16, 2026
The post describes Cooper as an ambulance chaser who preys on people who have just gone through a horrific accident so she can get the exclusive.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 14, 2026
The blockading of "critical national infrastructure" had "resulted in fuel shortages that are directly impacting on emergency services such as hospitals, the ambulance service, and the fire service", he said.
From Barron's • Apr. 12, 2026
Tears leaked from Jessie’s eyes and soaked into her pillow as she stared at the ceiling, counting the number of times she heard ambulance sirens blare down the avenue en route to the hospital.
From "The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street" by Karina Yan Glaser
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
