See Also: vehicle(medicine)
vehicle(dictionary)
vehicle(dictionary)
launch vehicle(encyclopedia)
armoured vehicle(encyclopedia)
Investement vehicle(finance)
air-cushion vehicle(encyclopedia)
vehicle emissions(medicine)
motor vehicle(dictionary)
recreational vehicle(dictionary)

vehicle (iou)



vehicle noun & verb. E17.
[French vehicule or Latin VEHICULUM, from vehere carry.]
A. noun.
A substance, esp. a liquid, which facilitates the application or use of another substance mixed with it or dissolved in it; spec. (a) Pharmacology an inactive medium in which strong or unpalatable drugs are administered, or which is used to give bulk to a medicine; (b) Painting the fluid (either the medium or the diluent or a mixture of both) in which pigment is suspended for use. E17.
A thing serving as a means of transmitting, conveying, or embodying something; an instrument, a medium; a channel. E17.
J. Moore If the water..be the vehicle of this disease. J. Morse They viewed the tea as a vehicle of an unconstitutional tax. M. C. Gerald Three major vehicles of therapy: prayers, surgery, and drugs.
b. spec. in Commerce. A privately controlled company through which an individual or organization conducts a particular kind of business, esp. investment. L20.
A means or medium for conveying ideas or impressions; a medium of expression or utterance. Freq. foll. by for, of. M17.
G. M. Trevelyan The language had changedfrom a vehicle of poetry..to a vehicle of science. H. Carpenter A children's book can be the perfect vehicle for an adult's most..private concerns. Times Literary Supplement She is..only a vehicle to represent an aspect of the Indian scene.
b. The literal meaning of the word or words used in a metaphor, as distinct from the metaphor's subject. Opp. tenor. M20.
A material embodiment, or other shape or form, in which something spiritual appears or is manifested. M17.
A means of conveyance, usu. with wheels, for transporting people, goods, etc.; a car, cart, truck, carriage, sledge, etc. M17.
RECREATIONAL vehicle. utility vehicle: see UTILITY adjective.
Jo Grimond Rolls-Royce armoured carssuperb vehicles.
b. Any means of carriage or transport; a receptacle in which something is placed in order to be moved. L17.
A. MacLean The cable-car was a twelve-passenger vehicle.
c. A space rocket in relation to its payload. M20.
fig. A song, play, film, etc., that is intended or serves to display the leading actor or performer to the best advantage. M19.
Q Moonwalker..the Michael Jackson vehicle was rolling to..the best cinema grosses.
Comb.: vehicle-mile a distance of one mile travelled by one vehicle, used as a statistical unit; vehicle mine a land-mine designed to destroy vehicles; vehicle registration document a motor vehicle's logbook (see LOGBOOK 2).
b. verb trans. Place or convey in a vehicle. Chiefly as vehicled ppl adjective. E18.