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moving van

moving van

9 2.5
A large vehicle that carries furniture and boxes when people move to a new home
  • noun
  • /ˈmuːvɪŋ væn/
  • US
translation icon : camión de mudanza
  • The lenders have packed all their belongings into a moving van.
  • moving van pulls
  • moving van arrived
  • unload the moving van

Examples

  • " No, the moving van finally arrived from Boston, with his furniture and books.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • A moving van is parked in front of the colonial house next door to the Burnhams'.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • I do remember the name of the moving van they used.

  • The previous move had required a separate moving van just for the books.

    Blog text (13)
  • Let's go get our stuff from the moving van!

  • We can't afford another moving van; we don't even have enough cash to get through the month, let alone get to another state.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • We hired a moving van to transport our furniture to the new apartment.

  • The moving van arrived early in the morning to help us with our relocation.

  • After loading everything into the moving van, we waved goodbye to our old home.

Synonyms

vehicle
vsmoving van
1.6

A machine like a car or bus that carries people and goods

is a specific large transport meant for furniture and household or office items
van
vsmoving van
85 1.0

A vehicle that has beds and a small kitchen for living while traveling

is designed to carry furniture and personal belongings during a change of address
delivery truck
vsmoving van
  • US
16 2.5

A vehicle like a van that carries packages to customers

is used for carrying furniture and belongings between homes or offices
delivery van
vsmoving van
3 1.8

A van that carries goods to customers

is for transporting household furniture and personal items when changing residence or office
pantechnicon
vsmoving van
  • Archaic
9.9

A large van used to move furniture during house moves

is for transporting furniture and personal belongings when changing home or office

Surface Forms

moving van singular
moving vans plural

Morphology

moving + van

The meaning 'a van used for moving belongings' is directly derivable from combining 'moving' (relating to relocation/change of residence) and 'van' (a cargo vehicle); a B1 learner who knows both words can infer this purpose. The modifier+noun composition indicating intended use is a common, cross-linguistic pattern, so the expression is transparently interpretable.

Etymology

Moving van shows a simple image: a van used for moving house things, with sofas and boxes being loaded into a big vehicle. That's why it means a large vehicle for carrying furniture and personal things when you 'move' to a new home.