*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of van

Short for caravan.

4 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 4 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗
noun

A covered motor vehicle used to carry goods or (normally less than ten) persons, usually roughly cuboid in shape, Depending on the type of van, it can be bigger or smaller than a pickup truck and SUV, and longer and higher than a car but relatively smaller than a truck/lorry or a bus. · An enclosed railway vehicle for transport of goods, such as a boxcar/box van. · A light wagon, either covered or open, used by tradesmen and others for the transportation of goods. · A large towable vehicle equipped for the repair of structures that cannot easily be moved.

verb

To transport in a van or similar vehicle (especially of horses). · Of law enforcement: to arrest (not necessarily in a van; derived from party van).

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Short for caravan.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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        "A covered motor vehicle used to carry goods or (normally less than ten) persons, usually roughly cuboid in shape, Depending on the type of van, it can be bigger or smaller than a pickup truck and SUV, and longer and higher than a car but relatively smaller than a truck/lorry or a bus.",
        "An enclosed railway vehicle for transport of goods, such as a boxcar/box van.",
        "A light wagon, either covered or open, used by tradesmen and others for the transportation of goods.",
        "A large towable vehicle equipped for the repair of structures that cannot easily be moved."
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      ],
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        "transitive",
        "Internet"
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Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
noun

Clipping of vanguard.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Shortening of vanguard.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "Clipping of vanguard."
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Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗
noun

A shovel used in cleansing ore.

verb

To wash or cleanse, as a small portion of ore, on a shovel.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Cornish.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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Source etymology 4

Original entry ↗
noun

A fan or other contrivance, such as a sieve, for winnowing grain. · A wing with which the air is beaten.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Latin vannus (“a van, or fan for winnowing grain”): compare French van and English fan, winnow. Doublet of fan.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Unspecified derivation mentionvannusla
  • Cognate mentionvanfr
  • Cognate mentionfanen
  • Doublet mentionfanen
Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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    },
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    },
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Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for van →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-dmFu