motorist

[moh-ter-ist]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR motorist ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a person who drives or travels in a privately owned automobile.

RELATED WORDS

traveler, tourist, autoist

Nearby words

Origin of motorist

First recorded in 1895–1900; motor + -ist

Related formsnon·mo·tor·ist, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for motorist

But the motorist, of all travelers, can see larger outlines.
Europe from a Motor Car|Russell Richardson
While very dangerous in places, the pass is free from the restrictions which the motorist finds on the Simplon.
Europe from a Motor Car|Russell Richardson
A motorist or cyclist thinks nothing of an extra mile or two in search of good cheer.
Old Country Inns of England|Henry P. Maskell
Would the motorist pay any attention to him, or would he flash past and leave him in the dust?
The White Feather|P. G. Wodehouse

A fine road brings the motorist sixty miles from the lively city of Little Rock.
The Book of the National Parks|Robert Sterling Yard

British Dictionary definitions for motorist

motorist

noun

a driver of a car, esp when considered as a car-owner

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for motorist

motorist

"motor-car driver," 1896, from motor- + -ist. Earlier as a name for electric railway drivers (1889). Other early alternatives included motorneer.

"Motorer" we have given our reasons for rejecting, and there only remains "motorist" or a compound like "motor-man" or "motor-driver." Mr. C.P.G. Scott, the etymologist of the Century Dictionary, strongly favors "motor-man" or "motor-driver," though he would not object to "motorist" and prefers it above any other single word. ["Electric Power," October 1889]