A van is a kind of vehicle used for transporting goods or people.
In British English usage, it can be either specially designed or based on a saloon or sedan car, the latter type often including derivatives with open backs (such as pick-up trucks). There are vans in all shapes and sizes, ranging from the classic van version of the tiny Mini to much larger vehicles such as the Mercedes Sprinter, Ford E-Series, and Nissan commercial vehicles. Vans run up to about 4 tons and are classified as Light Duty Trucks (North America) or Light Commercial Vehicles (Europe). Similar larger vehicles are lorries (full sized trucks), and are not known as vans.
Read more about Van: Word Usage and Etymology, Examples, Usage
Famous quotes containing the word van:
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—Willard Van Orman Quine (b. 1908)
“The line that I am urging as today’s conventional wisdom is not a denial of consciousness. It is often called, with more reason, a repudiation of mind. It is indeed a repudiation of mind as a second substance, over and above body. It can be described less harshly as an identification of mind with some of the faculties, states, and activities of the body. Mental states and events are a special subclass of the states and events of the human or animal body.”
—Willard Van Orman Quine (b. 1908)
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—Gus Van Sant, U.S. screenwriter and director, and Dan Yost. Bob Hughes (Matt Dillon)