Meanings
nounshopvac (plural shopvacs)
plural shopvacs · alternative shop-vac · alternative shop vac · alternative shop vacuum
- A heavy-duty industrial vacuum cleaner designed to handle debris from a worksite or mechanical shop.
- A wet-dry vacuum cleaner that can vacuum up wet material, liquids, and conventional dry mass, dust, dirt, sand, etc. and may be used as a makeshift pump in emergencies.
Origin
Genericization of the trademark Shop-Vac, from shop + vac, from workshop and vacuum cleaner.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Finnish rakennusimuri, työmaaimuri
- rakennusimuriheavy-duty vacuum cleaner
- työmaaimuriheavy-duty vacuum cleaner
- verstasimuriheavy-duty vacuum cleaner
Cite this entry
APA
shopvac. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shopvac
MLA
“shopvac.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shopvac. Accessed November 2, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “shopvac,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shopvac.
Source: shopvac on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.