runabout
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See also: run about
English
Etymology
Noun
runabout (plural runabouts)
- Any of several small vehicles, especially a small motor car for use on short journeys.
- 1913, Robert Barr, chapter 2, in Lord Stranleigh Abroad:
- The door being open, Stranleigh walked in unannounced. A two-seated runabout […] stood by the window, where it could be viewed by passers-by. Further down the room rested a chassis, […]
- (dated) A motor car having a single row of seats.
- (historical) A light, open, American horse-drawn vehicle with four large wheels.
- (archaic) A gadabout or vagabond.
- (science fiction) A small, relatively maneuverable spacecraft or shuttlecraft.
Related terms
French
Pronunciation
Noun
runabout m (plural runabouts)
- runabout (motor vehicle)
Further reading
- “runabout”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé , 2012.
Spanish
Etymology
Unadapted borrowing from English runabout
Noun
runabout m (plural runabouts)
- runabout (motor vehicle)
Usage notes
According to Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) prescriptions, unadapted foreign words should be written in italics in a text printed in roman type, and vice versa, and in quotation marks in a manuscript text or when italics are not available. In practice, this RAE prescription is not always followed.