LORRY
What does "LORRY" mean?
A large motor vehicle for transporting goods; the British word for a truck.
Meanings
- A large road vehicle designed to carry heavy loads; a truck (British and Commonwealth usage). A lorry full of gravel blocked the narrow lane.
Did you know?
- Before it meant a road truck, a 'lorry' was a low flat wagon that ran on rails - the word jumped from the railway to the road as motor transport took over.
Word origin
First recorded in the mid-19th century for a low, flat railway wagon; of uncertain origin, possibly from the dialect verb 'lurry' (to pull or drag). Now the standard British term where Americans say 'truck'.
Remember it
LORRY = a 'roaring' load on the road; the double-R rumbles like a heavy truck's engine.
A little poem
Two R's, heavy as
the load it hauls through grey rain-
the motorway hums.
haiku
Wordplay
- What do you call a truck that crossed the Atlantic? A lorry, apparently.
What it teaches
The same machine answers to two names across one ocean - words travel by accident of geography.
Quick facts
What does LORRY mean?
A large motor vehicle for transporting goods; the British word for a truck.
Is LORRY a valid word?
Yes — LORRY is one of the answer words in Wordul, the daily word game.
How many letters is LORRY?
LORRY has 5 letters and 2 syllables.
Where does LORRY come from?
First recorded in the mid-19th century for a low, flat railway wagon; of uncertain origin, possibly from the dialect verb 'lurry' (to pull or drag). Now the standard British term where Americans say 'truck'.
What can LORRY teach us?
The same machine answers to two names across one ocean - words travel by accident of geography.
How players do
Be the first to solve it.