van1 / van/ • n. a covered boxlike motor vehicle, typically having a rear door and sliding doors on the side panels, used for transporting goods or people. ∎ a covered truck used for moving goods, esp. furniture. ∎ Brit. a caravan.van2 • n. (the van) the foremost part of a company of people moving or preparing to move forward, esp. the foremost division of an advancing military force: in the van were the foremost chiefs and some of the warriors astride horses. ∎ fig. the forefront: he was in the van of the movement to encourage the cultivation of wildflowers.van3 • n. 1. archaic a winnowing fan. 2.archaic or poetic/lit. a bird's wing.
The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English
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van1 winnowing basket or shovel XV; shovel used in testing ore, etc. XVII; (poet.) wing; sail of a windmill XIX. south, and western var. of FAN1, prob. reinforced by (O)F. van or L. vannus.
The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English EtymologyT. F. HOAD
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Van
a company of troops moving forward; the forward section of such a company or train of persons, 1633.
Examples : van of armies, 1879; of circumstances, 1820; of insurgents, 1816; of the Celtic migrations, 1850; of the procession, 1878; of testimonies, 1772; of the war, 1716.
Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms
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van3 covered vehicle for conveying goods. XIX. Shortening of CARAVAN.
The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English EtymologyT. F. HOAD
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van (væn) Tennis advantage
The Oxford Dictionary of AbbreviationsFRAN ALEXANDER , PETER BLAIR , JOHN DAINTITH , ALICE GRANDISON , VALERIE ILLINGWORTH , ELIZABETH MARTIN , ANNE STIBBS , JUDY PEARSALL , and SARA TULLOCH
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FRAN ALEXANDER , PETER BLAIR , JOHN DAINTITH , ALICE GRANDISON , VALERIE ILLINGWORTH , ELIZABETH MARTIN , ANNE STIBBS , JUDY PEARSALL , and SARA TULLOCH "van
." The Oxford Dictionary of Abbreviations. . Encyclopedia.com. 10 Nov. 2026 <https://www.encyclopedia.com>.
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