trailer

American  

[tray-ler] / ˈtreɪ lər /

noun

• trailers
  plural

1. a large van or wagon drawn by an automobile, truck, or tractor, used especially in hauling freight by road.

2. Also called travel trailer. a vehicle attached to an automobile and used as a mobile home or place of business, usually equipped with furniture, kitchen facilities, bathroom, etc.

3. a person or thing that trails.

4. a trailing plant.

5. a short promotional film composed of clips showing highlights of a movie due for release in the near future.

6. blank film at the end of a reel or strip of film, for winding off the film in a motion-picture camera or projector.

7. Ceramics. a can with a spout, used in slip trailing.

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trailer British  

/ ˈtreɪlə /

noun

1. a road vehicle, usually two-wheeled, towed by a motor vehicle: used for transporting boats, etc

2. the part of an articulated lorry that is drawn by the cab

3. a series of short extracts from a film, used to advertise it in a cinema or on television

4. a person or thing that trails

5. Also called (in Britain and certain other countries): caravan. a large enclosed vehicle capable of being pulled by a car or lorry and equipped to be lived in

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• trailers
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of trailer

First recorded in 1580–90; trail + -er ¹

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Explanation

A trailer is a wheeled vehicle that can't move on its own — it needs to be pulled by a car, truck, or other vehicle. Some bike-riding parents tow their small children behind them in bicycle trailers. The trailer you might put a boat on, hitching it to your truck, trails behind the vehicle that's pulling it. Another meaning of trailer is a film preview or advertisement that theaters show before a movie. It might seem strange to call it a trailer when it comes first, but the earliest trailers, at the start of the 20th century, came after the movie, trailing it.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

trailer trailers

Inside his trailer, he deployed a tool he invented: a broom handle wrapped in paper towels and duct tape, lovingly dubbed the “magic ferret plunger.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 4, 2026

"The march was just the trailer," a party leader told the BBC, adding that "Sunday's rally will be several times bigger than that".

From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2026

“I love the idea that, with a trailer park, you’re in a kind of community,” she told the New York Times Style Magazine in 2021.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 27, 2026

In a trailer parked on the lot, he had found the operation manager.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 21, 2026

I blurted as the bus pulled out of the trailer park.

From "The Million Dollar Shot" by Dan Gutman

They lean casually against the trailers, finding respite in the shade, and line up at the catering tent, which is still serving breakfast.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 5, 2026

It is very unusual for trailers to be released for movies without a distributor or release date.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026

Some residents took refuge in camper vans and trailers.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 17, 2026

David Hacker, owner of subcontractor Construction Specialties of North Florida, said they have had to pick up trailers on the side of the road after crews were detained.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

When people emerge from their trailers, I thrust my shoulders back, trying to stand up straight.

From "Internment" by Samira Ahmed

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Related Words

• mobile home

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