vehicle

noun

ve·​hi·​cle ˈvē-ə-kəl 

also

ˈvē-ˌhi-kəl 

1

: a means of carrying or transporting something

planes, trains, and other vehicles

: such as

a

: motor vehicle

b

: a piece of mechanized equipment

2

: an agent of transmission : carrier

3

: a medium through which something is expressed, achieved, or displayed

an investment vehicle

especially : a work created especially to display the talents of a particular performer

4

a

: an inert medium (such as a syrup) in which a medicinally active agent is administered

b

: any of various media acting usually as solvents, carriers, or binders for active ingredients or pigments

Synonyms

• agency
• agent
• instrument
• instrumentality
• machinery
• means
• medium
• ministry
• organ

Examples of vehicle in a Sentence

cars, trucks, and other vehicles

The vehicle's driver was severely injured in the crash.

Have you seen his new car? It's a fine-looking vehicle.

Water and insects can be vehicles of infection.

art as a vehicle for self-expression

Words and pictures are vehicles of communication.

These big-budget movies are star vehicles for well-known actors.

Recent Examples on the Web

As well as aiming for Carbon Neutrality by 2030, Oslo has one of the highest rates of electric vehicle ownership in the world and has an efficient and green public transport system, including buses, trams, metro lines and ferries that run on electricity, most of which comes from renewable sources. —Joanne Shurvell, Forbes, 2 Jan. 2025

Emergency services attend the scene on Bourbon Street after a vehicle drove into a crowd on New Orleans' Canal and Bourbon Streets, Jan. 1, 2025, killing 10 people. —Tucker Reals, CBS News, 1 Jan. 2025

On the roads along the way, tanks and armored vehicles were left abandoned, had crashed or had broken down. —Carlotta Gall, New York Times, 1 Jan. 2025

Weapons and a potential IED were located inside the suspect's vehicle and other potential IEDs were also located in the French Quarter. —Jackson Thompson, Fox News, 1 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French & Latin; French véhicule, going back to Middle French, borrowed from Medieval Latin vehiculum "medium, agent of transmission," going back to Latin, "wheeled vehicle, means of transport," from vehere "to carry, convey" + -culum, instrumental suffix (going back to Indo-European *-tlom) — more at way entry 1

First Known Use

1612, in the meaning defined at sense 4a

Phrases Containing vehicle

• air-cushion vehicle
• all-terrain vehicle
• heavy goods vehicle
• launch vehicle
• motor vehicle
• recreational vehicle
• sport utility vehicle
• wave down (a vehicle)

Kids Definition

vehicle

noun

ve·​hi·​cle ˈvē-ˌ(h)ik-əl  ˈvē-ə-kəl 

1

: a means by which something is passed along, expressed, achieved, or shown

movies are vehicles of ideas

2

: something used to transport persons or goods

a space vehicle

Medical Definition

vehicle

noun

ve·​hi·​cle ˈvē-ˌ(h)ik-əl  ˈvē-ə-kəl 

1

: an inert medium in which a medicinally active agent is administered

2

: an agent of transmission

a vehicle of infection