wagon

B1 Topic:Transportation

Also spelled waggon

US /ˈwæɡən/ UK /ˈwæɡ(ə)n/ See IPA manual

Freq #4300

Meanings

1

noun
A large four-wheeled vehicle, usually pulled by horses, used to carry heavy goods.

The farmer loaded hay onto the wagon.
2

noun
An open railway vehicle for carrying goods.

The freight train pulled dozens of coal wagons.
3

noun
A child's small open cart with a long handle for pulling.

The boy pulled his little red wagon down the path.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

2 noun · an open railway vehicle for... car carriagerailway wagontruck

Word family

Forms wagons

Derived forms bandwagonbuck-wagonchug-wagonfreightwagonmeat-wagonsick-wagonwaggoningwagon-litwagon-sheetwagonagewagonerwagoning

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

covered wagon
a large wagon with an arched fabric roof, associated with nineteenth-century migration across North America

Adjective + noun

Proverbs (3)

See all

Simplified etymology

Wagon comes from Dutch wagen. It is related to the Old English word wain, which also meant “wagon.”

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle Dutch wagen, from Old Dutch *wagan, from Proto-West Germanic *wagn, from Proto-Germanic *wagnaz (“wagon”), from Proto-Indo-European *weǵʰ- (“to transport”). Generally displaced native cognate wain, from Old English wæġn, of which it is a doublet. Related also to way, weigh. Sense 8 (“woman of loose morals; obnoxious woman”) is probably a derogatory and jocular reference to a woman being “ridden”, that is, mounted for the purpose of sexual intercourse. The verb is derived from the noun.

*weǵʰ- Proto-Indo-European *wagan odt *wagn Proto-West Germanic *wagnaz Proto-Germanic

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Transportation

External links

# wagon

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B1
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈwæɡən/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈwæɡ(ə)n/
**Frequency rank:** 4300

## Meanings
1. A large four-wheeled vehicle, usually pulled by horses, used to carry heavy goods.
2. An open railway vehicle for carrying goods.
3. A child's small open cart with a long handle for pulling.

## Examples
- The farmer loaded hay onto the wagon.
- The freight train pulled dozens of coal wagons.
- The boy pulled his little red wagon down the path.

## Derived Forms
- bandwagon
- buck-wagon
- chug-wagon
- freightwagon
- meat-wagon
- sick-wagon
- waggoning
- wagon-lit
- wagon-sheet
- wagonage
- wagoner
- wagoning

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *weǵʰ-
- Root: *wagan
- Root: *wagn
- Root: *wagnaz

## Etymology
Borrowed from Middle Dutch wagen, from Old Dutch *wagan, from Proto-West Germanic *wagn, from Proto-Germanic *wagnaz (“wagon”), from Proto-Indo-European *weǵʰ- (“to transport”). Generally displaced native cognate wain, from Old English wæġn, of which it is a doublet. Related also to way, weigh. Sense 8 (“woman of loose morals; obnoxious woman”) is probably a derogatory and jocular reference to a woman being “ridden”, that is, mounted for the purpose of sexual intercourse. The verb is derived from the noun.

## AI Etymology
Wagon is borrowed from Middle Dutch wagen, from Old Dutch *wagan, from Proto-West Germanic *wagn, from Proto-Germanic *wagnaz (“wagon”), from Proto-Indo-European *weǵʰ- (“to transport”). Generally displaced native cognate wain, from Old English wæġn, of which it is a doublet. Related also to way, weigh. Sense 8 (“woman of loose morals; obnoxious woman”) is probably a derogatory and jocular reference to a woman being “ridden”, that is, mounted for the purpose of sexual intercourse. The verb is derived from the noun. In present-day use, it can mean a large four-wheeled vehicle, usually pulled by horses, used to carry heavy goods, or a open railway vehicle for carrying goods.

## Topics
- Transportation

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