| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
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| vehicle |
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| SYLLABICATION: | ve·hi·cle |
| PRONUNCIATION: |  v   -k l |
| NOUN: | 1a. A device or structure for transporting persons or things; a conveyance: a space vehicle. b. A self-propelled conveyance that runs on tires; a motor vehicle. 2. A medium through which something is transmitted, expressed, or accomplished: His novels are a vehicle for his political views. 3. The concrete or specific word or phrase that is applied to the tenor of a metaphor and gives the metaphor its figurative power, as walking shadow in “Life's but a walking shadow” (Shakespeare). 4. A play, role, or piece of music used to display the special talents of one performer or company. 5. A substance of no therapeutic value used to convey an active medicine for administration. 6. A substance, such as oil, in which paint pigments are mixed for application. | | ETYMOLOGY: | Latin vehiculum, from vehere, to carry. See wegh- in Appendix I.
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| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
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