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jeepney

jeepney

1 7.7
A small colorful bus that carries people in the Philippines and is often decorated
  • noun
  • /ˈdʒipni/
  • Philippine
translation icon : jeepney
  • The brightly colored jeepney drove past, filled with smiling passengers enjoying the ride.

Examples

  • You can be adding buses, jeepneys, taxis, and cars on the road, and your oil consumption goes up along with oil prices, and this is sustainable because each passenger is still able to pay his nickel and dime for the ride.

    Blog text (32)
  • I think of my eight-year-old mother and of that jeepney.

    Fiction book (2000)
  • But the real star of Quiapo's dappled streets is the classic Philippine jeepney.

    Blog text (30)
  • Perhaps they've already discovered how to turn the American army jeeps into the modes of public transport we call jeepneys.

    Fiction book (2000)
  • "Why don't you get married, hija?" he asks me while we are in the middle of an intersection filled with cars, buses, and jeepneys all claiming their right of way.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • With the gap "bridged" (so to speak), transportation between the two islands just got easier as cars, cabs, vans, buses, jeepneys, and curious tourists.

    Blog text (22)
  • Manila holds a lot of history for Americans, as is seen in the number of reconverted U.S. World War II jeeps called "jeepneys" which serve as mini-buses carrying commuters all over town.

    Academic text (1995)
  • Every morning, I take the jeepney to work, watching the bustling streets of Manila through the window.

  • She hopped onto the jeepney and paid the driver, ready to explore the city.

Synonyms

jitney
vsjeepney
  • Archaic
3 9.9

A small bus or car that carries people for a low price and stops where needed

is a colorful Philippine vehicle converted from military vehicles and richly decorated

How Big

bus
1.0
minibus
4 2.7
jeepney
  • Philippine
1 7.7
car
1.0
motorcycle
275 2.3

Surface Forms

jeepney singular
jeepneys plural

Morphology

jeepney = jeep (semi-transparent) = jeep + ney

The connection to the vehicle 'jeep' is obvious, but the specific Filipino form, shared-taxi function and decorative cultural features are not fully predictable from 'jeep' alone; there is also likely influence from the word 'jitney'.

Etymology

Jeepney comes from the American jeep ('military vehicle') and the word jitney ('cheap ride'). So, a jeepney is a small public bus made from jeeps, often brightly decorated and used for cheap city travel in the Philippines.