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Glite Dictionary
coachbuilder

coachbuilder

9.5
A person or company that makes bodies for cars, often by hand
  • noun
  • /ˈkoʊtʃˌbɪldər/
  • Specialized
translation icon : carrocero
  • The family business has been a renowned coachbuilder for generations, creating custom bodies for luxury cars.

Examples

  • Not a 1900 Zagato, it's the 1957 ATL Mille Miglia car: a unique one-off styling project by Italian coachbuilders ATL.

    Blog text (28)

  • The author of this column, it seems, wants both the cost savings of mass production and the individuality of a custom coachbuilder.

    Blog text (25)

  • The bespoke design of the car was crafted by a skilled coachbuilder known for their attention to detail.

  • After visiting the coachbuilder, I was amazed by the craftsmanship of the hand-built vehicle bodies.

Synonyms

coachmaker
vscoachbuilder
  • UK
7.7

A person or company that designs and builds the bodies of buses

is broader, covering bodies for any motor vehicle not only buses
coachmaster
vscoachbuilder
  • Archaic
9.9

A person who builds and repairs horse-drawn carriages

refers to motor vehicle bodies rather than horse-drawn carriages

Surface Forms

coachbuilder singular
coachbuilders plural

Morphology

coachbuilder = coach + builder (transparent) = coach + build + er

The compound is a straightforward combination of 'coach' + 'builder' meaning someone who builds coach/vehicle bodies, which is directly inferable.

Etymology

Coachbuilder comes from coach 'a horse-drawn carriage' and builder 'maker'. At first it meant someone who made the bodies of carriages, and when cars arrived the same craft moved to making car bodies, so a coachbuilder today is a person or company who makes the outer body of a car.