automobile
Americannoun
adjective
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of automobile
1865–70; < French: literally, self-movable (vehicle). See auto- 1, mobile
Explanation
An automobile is a car: a vehicle with four wheels and an internal combustion engine. The automobile is one of the most common ways to travel. Thanks in part to Henry Ford, automobiles are just about everywhere: in cities, small towns, and even in rural areas, where it's too far to walk from place to place and there's very little public transportation. Trucks, vans, buses, and limousines are bigger than the typical automobile, but they’re automobiles, too. A motorcycle isn't an automobile because it only has two wheels. Automobiles are good for getting around, but they also cause pollution and automobile accidents.
Vocabulary lists containing automobile
To Thine Own Self Be True: Auto
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Frankenwords: Words with Roots from Different Languages
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Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Prefixes: auto-
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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.
The Ojai is manufactured for Waymo by Zeekr, a Chinese automobile company.
From Los Angeles Times • May 28, 2026
In Mexico, Chinese investment in industries such as the automobile sector generated more than 100,000 jobs from 2020 to 2023, according to one analysis.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 28, 2026
It only needs to handle enough repetitive tasks in warehouses, electronics plants, automobile factories and logistics centers to change the economics of labor.
From MarketWatch • May 27, 2026
As a place that came of age with the automobile, Los Angeles is a sprawl of freeways with a public transport system that would embarrass any medium-sized European city.
From Barron's • May 27, 2026
“You were in an automobile accident,” the doctor said.
From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin
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.
