van
van — noun
1. A road vehicle with an enclosed metal body, designed to move furniture, packages
A road vehicle with an enclosed metal body, designed to move furniture, packages, or equipment — larger than a car but smaller than a truck, and usually without windows on its rear sides.
The delivery driver parked the van outside the bakery and unloaded boxes of bread.
park + van + outside [location]
A white van with the company logo pulled into the loading bay at noon.
van as subject with destination phrase
Samir loaded his oil paints and stretched canvases into the van the night before his solo exhibition opened downtown.
The moving company sent two vans to carry all the furniture from the old apartment.
Each delivery van in the Pingo Logistics fleet can hold up to eight hundred kilograms of packages.
- truck
American term; usually larger and may have an open cargo bed
- lorry
British term for a large goods vehicle; generally bigger than a van
- delivery vehicle
broader term; includes vans, trucks, and other goods-carrying vehicles
文法句型
a/the van
[adjective] van
by van
用法筆記
In British English, a van is typically smaller than a lorry; in American English, the line between van and truck can be less clear, but a van is always fully enclosed.
常見錯誤
2. A road vehicle with windows on all sides, built to carry a group of people — typ
A road vehicle with windows on all sides, built to carry a group of people — typically seating eight to twelve passengers, larger than a car but smaller than a bus.
The tour company uses a twelve-seat van to take visitors around the national park.
[number]-seat van for group transport
Ayesha's family rented a van for their road trip along the coast last summer.
rent a van for [trip/purpose]
The airport shuttle van arrives every thirty minutes at the hotel entrance.
Élise drove the van to pick up the children from school each afternoon.
The van was packed with camping gear and six passengers heading to the mountains.
- minibus
especially common in British English; usually seats more than 12 people
- minivan
smaller, typically for a single family; common in North America
- people carrier
British term; usually a car-like vehicle with three rows of seats
文法句型
a/the van
[number]-seat van
by van
用法筆記
In everyday speech, 'van' can refer to either a cargo or passenger vehicle. When the distinction matters, use 'passenger van' for people or 'cargo van' / 'delivery van' for goods.
常見錯誤
3. The foremost position within a field of activity — held by a person, institution
The foremost position within a field of activity — held by a person, institution, or movement that is pushing ahead with new ideas, research, or methods. Short for 'vanguard'.
The RIKEN Center was in the van of natural language processing research, releasing the first large-scale Japanese language model in 2021.
in the van of [field] — with specific milestone and year
Renata's gallery in São Paulo led the van in digital video art, hosting Latin America's first AI film festival.
in the van of [art field] — with named specific event
Cape Town University was in the van of climate science, using a Wellcome grant to model drought across southern Africa.
Fitzcarraldo Editions led the van in publishing experimental translated fiction from underrepresented languages across Africa and Asia.
- vanguard
the full form of this sense; more common in modern English
- forefront
more common in everyday use; 'at the forefront of' means the same
- front line
more concrete image; used for active, pioneering work
- rear
the back or least advanced position
文法句型
in the van of [field]
lead the van in [activity]
用法筆記
This sense is always used in the fixed phrases 'in the van of' or 'lead the van'. It cannot stand alone as a simple noun (e.g. 'the van of science' is acceptable, but 'the van is innovative' is not). Most commonly found in formal or academic writing.
常見錯誤
4. On a train, a roofed section designed to carry luggage, parcels, mail, or freigh
On a train, a roofed section designed to carry luggage, parcels, mail, or freight — usually placed at the front or rear of a passenger train in the UK system.
The guard locked the luggage van before the train pulled out of Paddington Station.
luggage van — British railway compound noun
The postal workers wheeled trolleys of letters into the railway van before the Edinburgh train departed.
compound noun: railway van — loading mail before departure
Passengers watched their luggage being loaded into the van at the train's front.
The guard's van at the back of the train had a small window and desk.
- baggage car
American English equivalent
- luggage van
synonymous; slightly more specific to passenger luggage
- guard's van
a van at the rear where the guard (conductor) works
文法句型
the [purpose] van
[possessive] van
用法筆記
This sense is primarily British. In American English, the equivalent is called a 'baggage car' or 'freight car'. The term 'van' for a railway carriage is becoming less common as modern trains use dedicated luggage compartments built into passenger cars.
van — verb
1. To carry or convey goods, equipment, or items inside a van from one place to ano
To carry or convey goods, equipment, or items inside a van from one place to another — used mainly in commercial or logistical contexts.
The antique furniture was vanned from the estate to the auction house.
passive: be vanned from [place] to [place]
After the exhibition ended, the sculptures were vanned back to the studio.
passive: be vanned back to [place]
The auction house vanned the rare manuscripts from London to Edinburgh for the summer exhibition.
The rescue equipment was vanned to the disaster area within hours of the call.
文法句型
van + noun phrase + to/from [place]
be vanned + to/from [place]
用法筆記
This verb is rare and primarily used in British logistical or commercial writing. In everyday speech, people almost always say 'took by van', 'sent by van', or 'delivered in a van' instead. The passive construction ('was vanned') is more common than the active form.