automobile

What it means

1. AustraliaCanadaNew ZealandPhilippinesUSA type of motor vehicle designed to move on the ground under its own stored power and intended to carry a driver, a small number of additional passengers, and a very limited amount of other load.

   Meronym: see list of auto parts

   1 more example

   Surprisingly, this analysis revealed that acute exposure to solvent vapors at concentrations below those associated with long-term effects appears to increase the risk of a fatal automobile accident.

   2013 July-August, Philip J. Bushnell, “Solvents, Ethanol, Car Crashes & Tolerance”, in American Scientist

   Synonyms: auto, cage, cah, car, devil wagon, horseless carriage, motor car, wheels

In a sentence

Meronym: see list of auto parts

Where it comes from

1. Proto-Indo-European*h₂ew
2. Proto-Indo-European*tó-
3. Proto-Hellenic*autós
4. Proto-Indo-European*h₂ew
5. Ancient Greekαὖ (aû)
6. Ancient Greekτόν (tón)
7. Ancient Greekαὐτός (autós)
8. Ancient Greekαὐτο- (auto-)
9. Frenchauto-
10. Proto-Indo-European*m(y)ewh₁-
11. Proto-Indo-European*m(y)owh₁éyeti
12. Proto-Italic*moweō
13. Latinmoveō
14. Latinmōbili
15. Frenchmobile
16. Frenchautomobile
17. Englishautomobile

From French automobile, from Ancient Greek αὐτός (autós, “self”) + French mobile (“moving”), from Latin mōbilis (“movable”), equivalent to auto- (“self”) + mobile.