coach
Americannoun
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coaches
plural
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a large, horse-drawn, four-wheeled carriage, usually enclosed.
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a public motorbus.
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Railroads. day coach.
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Also called air coach. a class of airline travel providing less luxurious accommodations than first class at a lower fare.
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a person who trains an athlete or a team of athletes.
a football coach.
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a private tutor who prepares a student for an examination.
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a person who instructs an actor or singer.
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Baseball. a playing or nonplaying member of the team at bat who is stationed in the box outside first or third base to signal instructions to and advise base runners and batters.
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Nautical. an after cabin in a sailing ship, located beneath the poop deck, for use especially by the commander of the ship.
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a type of inexpensive automobile with a boxlike, usually two-door, body manufactured in the 1920s.
verb (used with object)
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coaches,
present (3rd person singular)
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coached,
past participle, past
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coaching
present participle
verb (used without object)
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coaches,
present (3rd person singular)
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coached,
past participle, past
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coaching
present participle
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to act as a coach.
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to go by or in a coach.
adverb
noun
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a vehicle for several passengers, used for transport over long distances, sightseeing, etc
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a large four-wheeled enclosed carriage, usually horse-drawn
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a railway carriage carrying passengers
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a trainer or instructor
a drama coach
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a tutor who prepares students for examinations
verb
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to give tuition or instruction to (a pupil)
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(tr) to transport in a bus or coach
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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coachabilitynoun
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coachernoun
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overcoachverb
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outcoachverb (used with object)
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coachableadjective
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uncoachableadjective
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uncoachedadjective
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well-coachedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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coachsimple
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coachessimple
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have coachedperfect
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has coachedperfect
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am coachingprogressive
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are coachingprogressive
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is coachingprogressive
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have been coachingperfect progressive
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has been coachingperfect progressive
Past
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coachedsimple
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had coachedperfect
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was coachingprogressive
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were coachingprogressive
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had been coachingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of coach
First recorded in 1550–60; 1840–50 for sense “tutor”; earlier coche(e), from Middle French coche, from German Kotsche, Kutsche, from Hungarian kocsi, short for kocsi szekér “cart of Kocs,” town on the main road between Vienna and Budapest; senses referring to tutoring from the conception of the tutor as one who carries the student through examinations
Explanation
Nowadays, we mostly think of a coach as someone who trains a team, but it can also refer to a vehicle, such as a horse-drawn coach or coach bus (the kind with a bathroom in the back). The first meaning of coach was in the mid-16th Century for a carriage, probably named for Kocs, the Hungarian village where they were first made and called kocsi. In the mid-19th Century, the name was given to railway cars, and nowadays the least expensive travel class is described as "coach." It's thought that the idea of a coach as a teacher came about because of the idea that a coach "carries" a student to success through his or her teaching.
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.
See Examples For:
Davis, the Sunday afternoon worrier, worked with an executive coach who helped her reimagine the “Sunday scaries” as “Monday maybe.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 11, 2026
The former player and coach, known for his sweaters and aviator sunglasses, won championships as a game-changing tight end before leading one of the most memorable teams in NFL history.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026
Defeat for the Wallabies was their first since head coach Les Kiss succeeded Joe Schmidt in July, ending their six-game unbeaten run.
From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2026
Entering the final week of preseason games, Lakers coach JJ Redick still is unsure when he’ll get a full look at his new-look team.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 10, 2026
All burst in the air before reaching her coach, the pieces of metal falling harmlessly in the middle distance.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
His article should be required reading for all high school athletes, their parents, coaches, and athletic directors.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 10, 2026
With coaches still tinkering with lineups in the preseason, turnovers became a problem when the ballhandling options dwindled.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 10, 2026
It didn’t take long for North Texas’ coaches to realize they’d struck gold.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
In addition, United say they have provided Gabriel with first-team care and services - included regular meetings with senior coaches and nutritionists.
From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026
Outside the train, people were strapped to the coaches and some stood on the steps holding on to the railings.
From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Then, the Chargers have a home game against Houston — also surprisingly winless — then play at Baltimore, where the 3-1 Ravens are coached by former Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 5, 2026
"I got to see Mikel and how he coached and the influence he was having," said Wilshere.
From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026
His grandfather, Larry, is a former player and coached for many years at Villanova.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026
Gregg Popovich coached the San Antonio Spurs from 1996 to 2025, winning a league-record 1,390 regular-season games, 170 postseason games and five NBA championships.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2026
But they were fearless and relentlessly coached and from the time they were able to walk they had only one certain goal in their lives in Odessa, Texas.
From "Friday Night Lights: A Town, A Team, And A Dream" by H.G. Bissinger
Elite marathoners go to extreme lengths to chase top times, shelling out fortunes on fancy coaching and remote altitude camps to gain an edge.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026
He was still part of Jose Mourinho's squad when United finished runners-up to Pep Guardiola's City side in 2018 and was part of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's coaching staff when it happened again in 2020-21.
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026
Ditka did have one more head coaching stint in the NFL from 1997 to 1999 with the New Orleans Saints.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2026
The sudden turn of events may have gotten folks in the Rams’ coaching booth a little too amped up.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 5, 2026
I’d learned that mental training was just as important as physical training, because despite our team’s upward trajectory in competitions, my teammates and coaching staff were intent on standing in my way.
From "Proud" by Ibtihaj Muhammad
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.
