streetcar

American  

[street-kahr] / ˈstritˌkɑr /

noun

1. a public vehicle running regularly along certain streets, usually on rails, as a trolley car or trolley bus.

---

streetcar British  

/ ˈstriːtˌkɑː /

noun

1. Also called: trolley car.   tram.   tramcar.  an electrically driven public transport vehicle that runs on rails let into the surface of the road, power usually being taken from an overhead wire

---

Etymology

Origin of streetcar

An Americanism dating back to 1860–65; street + car ¹

Example Sentences

When the next streetcar rolls in, the upper deck fills with a gaggle of schoolgirls, squabbling over who gets the window seat closest to the sea breeze.

From Barron's • Feb. 25, 2026

Engineering student Mahmoud Bassam, 24, has visited Alexandria just to ride the streetcar "since our tram in Cairo was removed", he told AFP.

From Barron's • Feb. 25, 2026

The commuters in “Le Métro” hark back to his early streetcar scenes but now there’s an air of mystery to the straphangers, with the central figure’s face obscured and bisected by a subway pole.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 10, 2025

An-My, you chose Robert Frank’s picture of a streetcar in New Orleans, taken that year.

From New York Times • Jun. 3, 2024

I turned away, checking my purse for streetcar fare and a handkerchief.

From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu

Related Words

• trolley