observation car
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of observation car
An Americanism dating back to 1870–75
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.
Armed with this book and a good camera, I was able to be in the observation car to photograph what I wanted to see.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 3, 2026
Meanwhile, one end of the observation car had been filled by several women in white bonnets, joined by men with straw hats, footlong beards and no mustaches.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 9, 2025
Now is the time to hop on board Amtrak’s long-distance California Zephyr and see the amazing snowpack from the comfort of the train’s observation car.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 7, 2024
Aside from the observation car, the train’s other social hub is the dining car.
From New York Times ● Jul. 18, 2022
The observation car and the Santoine car were uncoupled here and the train made up again with the Santoine car as the last car of the train and the observation car ahead of it.
From The Blind Man's Eyes by Balmer, Edwin
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.
