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
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
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.
They gave him water and called for an ambulance, only to be told it could be a while before paramedics arrived.
From BBC • Jun. 27, 2026
Cabarza was transported by ambulance from this area, which authorities described as a "disaster zone."
From Barron's • Jun. 25, 2026
Paramedics from the Kern County Fire Department arrived and took over until an ambulance arrived, police said.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 25, 2026
"One of the spectators, a male youth in his mid-teens, was brought by ambulance from the scene to Letterkenny University Hospital, where he was later pronounced deceased."
From BBC • Jun. 20, 2026
She emerges from the ambulance to greet a group of strangers.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
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.
