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Synonyms

van

1 American  
[van] / væn /

noun

  1. the foremost or front division of an army, a fleet, or any group leading an advance or in position to lead an advance.

  2. those who are in the forefront of a movement or the like.

  3. the forefront in any movement, course of progress, or the like.

van 2 American  
[van] / væn /

noun

  1. a covered vehicle, usually a large truck or trailer, used for moving furniture, goods, animals, etc.

  2. a smaller boxlike vehicle that resembles a panel truck, often has double doors both at the rear and along the curb side, and that can be used as a truck, fitted with rows of seats, or equipped with living quarters for traveling and camping.

  3. British.

    1. a railway baggage car.

    2. a covered, boxlike railway car, as one used to carry freight.

    3. a small, horse-drawn wagon or a small truck, as one used by tradespeople to carry light goods.

  4. Also called van conversion.  a conventional van whose cargo area has been equipped with living facilities, extra windows, and often increased headroom.

verb (used with object)

vanned, vanning

  1. to transport or carry (freight, passengers, etc.) in a van.

verb (used without object)

vanned, vanning

  1. to travel in a van.

van 3 American  
[van, vahn] / væn, vɑn /
Or Van

preposition

  1. from; of (used in Dutch personal names, originally to indicate place of origin).

van 4 American  
[van] / væn /

noun

Archaic.

  1. a bird's wing or tail, especially when fanned out, as in flight or as part of a mating display.

Van 5 American  
[van, vahn] / væn, vɑn /

noun

  1. Lake, a salt lake in E Turkey. 1,454 sq. mi. (3,766 sq. km).

  2. a town on this lake.

  3. a male given name.

van 1 British  
/ væn /

noun

  1. short for caravan

  2. a covered motor vehicle for transporting goods, etc, by road

  3. a closed railway wagon in which the guard travels, for transporting goods, mail, etc

  4. See delivery van

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Van 2 British  
/ vɑːn /

noun

  1. a city in E Turkey, on Lake Van. Pop: 377 000 (2005 est)

  2. a salt lake in E Turkey, at an altitude of 1650 m (5400 ft): fed by melting snow and glaciers. Area: 3737 sq km (1433 sq miles)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
van 3 British  
/ væn /

noun

  1. any device for winnowing corn

  2. an archaic or poetic word for wing

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
van 4 British  
/ væn /

noun

  1. short for vanguard

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
van 5 British  
/ væn /

noun

  1. Usual US and Canadian word: ad.  short for advantage

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of van1

First recorded in 1600–10; short for vanguard

Origin of van2

First recorded in 1820–30; short for caravan

Origin of van3

From Dutch

Origin of van4

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, variant of fan 1

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.

Stephen Bunting silenced his critics as he inflicted a third final defeat of the season on Gian van Veen to win night four of the Premier League in Belfast.

From BBC

On the other side, the army had positioned a broken rickshaw van to break the fall.

From BBC

European auteurs, such as Thomas Ostermeier and Ivo van Hove have had great success burning through the texts to reveal the visceral clashes of characters whose souls are on the line along with their ideologies.

From Los Angeles Times

"I am a diligent recycler, I really try. But we've noticed that actually they seem to bung it all in the same van," she says.

From BBC

China, as well as Japan, had sent "economic assistance", Ghimire said, without giving a figure, while Indian aid included 86 pickup vans "to transport election materials".

From Barron's

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.