Definition of "van" in English

noun

1. 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.

2. (British) An enclosed railway vehicle for transport of goods, such as a boxcar/box van.

3. (dated) A light wagon, either covered or open, used by tradesmen and others for the transportation of goods.

4. (aerospace) A large towable vehicle equipped for the repair of structures that cannot easily be moved.

verb

1. (transitive) To transport in a van or similar vehicle (especially of horses).

2. (Internet slang, used in passive voice) Of law enforcement: to arrest (not necessarily in a van; derived from party van).

   • 2015 13-year-old credited with hacking CIA director’s AOL account gives bizarre, possibly final interview The hacker says he thinks he is about to be v&, or “vanned,” meaning being raided by law enforcement, sometime soon.

noun

1. Clipping of vanguard.

noun

1. (mining) A shovel used in cleansing ore.

verb

1. (mining) To wash or cleanse, as a small portion of ore, on a shovel.

noun

1. A fan or other contrivance, such as a sieve, for winnowing grain.

2. A wing with which the air is beaten.