Meanings
present singular third person self-drives · participle present self-driving · past self-drove · participle past self-driven
- intransitiveautomotiveTo drive autonomously; (of a motor vehicle) to drive itself without a human operator, by means of sensors and computer technology.
Motorists could legally allow their cars to “self-drive” on British motorways later this year – but only slowly, the government has announced.
2021 April 27, Gwyn Topham, “‘Self-driving’ cars could get green light for use on UK motorways this year”, in The Guardian1 more example
By self-driving vehicles, we mean those listed as automated vehicles by the Secretary of State for Transport under the Automated and Electric Vehicles Act 2018. (...) These vehicles are capable of safely driving themselves when the self-driving function is correctly turned on and the driver follows the manufacturer’s instructions.
2022 December 31, “The Highway Code 2022 valid 2023, UK, page 4”, in The Highway Code 2022 valid 2023, UK, page 4
Synonyms & antonyms
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
From self- + drive, as a back-formation from self-driving.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
self-drive. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/self-drive
“self-drive.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/self-drive. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “self-drive,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/self-drive.
Source: self-drive on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.