driverless

American  

[drahy-ver-lis] / ˈdraɪ vər lɪs /

adjective

1. 1. not having a human driver in control.

      The horse became startled and the now driverless horse-drawn carriage ran into a car.

   2. without a human operator.

      driverless machinery.

2. (of a vehicle) navigated and maneuvered by a computer without a need for human control or intervention under a range of driving situations and conditions.

   a driverless car.

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Etymology

Origin of driverless

First recorded in 1840–1850

Explanation

If you spot a car cruising down the road without a human at the wheel, don’t worry — it's not a ghost driving, it's probably just a driverless vehicle. The word driverless means exactly what it sounds like: a vehicle with no one driving it. The word combines driver, someone who drives or controls movement, with the suffix -less, which means "without." Driverless vehicles use technology like sensors and computers to "see" the road and make decisions without a person behind the wheel.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

driverless

That sounds unhinged if you have seen the viral Jimmy Kimmel video with his aunt screaming in a driverless car.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026

It can travel driverless from a rail depot to a station at speeds of up to 40 kilometres per hour.

From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026

In July, he said Tesla would focus on developing the driverless software first for the Cybercab robotaxi and its other vehicles, telling investors that he didn’t want the Semi to “be a distraction.”

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 25, 2026

The company has occasionally made headlines for bizarre incidents involving its driverless cars.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 12, 2026

Both she and Jan noticed that the wagon was empty and the horse driverless.

From The Emperor of Portugalia by Velma Swanston Howard