an enclosed automobile body having two or four doors and seating four or more persons on two full-width seats.
Also called (in Britain and certain other countries): saloon. a closed two-door or four-door car with four to six seats
short for sedan chair
First recorded in 1625–35; of obscure origin
A sedan is a car that seats at least four people. You might dream of getting a sports car when you're 16, but it's more likely that your parents will loan you the keys to their sedan. In the 17th century, a sedan was "a covered chair on poles," a fancy way for one person to ride, carried by at least four people. Today's sedan seats four, and it's powered by gasoline or electricity. Since about 1912, the word sedan has been used most often for talking about an automobile. The word is rooted in the Latin sedere, "sit."
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Lucas Scott, a Biddeford resident, said the agents were shouting as they surrounded a white sedan.
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026
He didn’t notice the gray Acura sedan that tailed him through rush-hour traffic on Sunset Boulevard.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 11, 2026
Nissan will launch the Rogue Hybrid e-Power this summer and plans a next-generation Infiniti Q50 sedan for next year.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026
As part of the cuts, Lucid said that it had eliminated the second production shift at its main manufacturing facility, in Arizona, where it makes the Lucid Air sedan and Lucid Gravity SUV.
From Barron's ● Jun. 22, 2026
To the left, the sedan had us boxed in.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
Its lineup now consists of the Model Y SUV, the Model 3 Sedan and the Cybertruck pickup.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 10, 2026
Sedan is surrounded by the foothills of the scenic Flint Hills, which contain the nation’s largest concentration of remaining tallgrass prairie.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 19, 2023
If they could bear him back to the team bus on a Sedan chair, they just might have.
From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2023
Cobain’s 1965 “Baby Blue” Dodge Dart 170 Sedan also fetched $375,000.
From Washington Times ● May 22, 2022
Its objective was to capture the critical railroad hub at the city of Sedan, which would break the rail network supporting the German army in France and Belgium.
From "The War to End All Wars: World War I" by Russell Freedman
Xiaomi, a maker of sporty sedans and SUVs, highlighted its hiring of European designers who worked at automakers such as Porsche and Lamborghini.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 24, 2026
China’s consumer future may not be led only by refrigerators and sedans.
From Barron's ● Apr. 11, 2026
Ten years ago, it sold two sedans in addition to its minivan.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 4, 2026
Amateur racers, pimped-out coupes, woodies and ragtops, sedate sedans and souped-up hot rods, all shared the brand-new, wide-open freeways and boulevards.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 26, 2026
These are the sedans used by team players for transportation around the city—but still, best not to arouse suspicions.
From "Warcross" by Marie Lu
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.
