Meaning & use
automobile
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Meaning
nouncountableformalAmerican
A road vehicle with four wheels and an engine that carries a small number of people.
Grammar: Countable: an automobile, two automobiles. In everyday speech, 'car' is much more common.
Patterns
- by automobile
- an automobile accident
- automobile industry
Henry Ford's assembly line made the automobile affordable for ordinary families.
The city is trying to reduce the number of automobiles in the center.
He was injured in an automobile accident last year.
Word forms
| plural | automobiles |
|---|
Common combinations
- automobile industry
- The automobile industry is a major employer in the region.
- automobile accident
- She was late because of an automobile accident on the highway.
- by automobile
- They traveled across the country by automobile.
- automobile manufacturer
- The automobile manufacturer announced a new electric model.
Synonyms and how they differ
- car
- The everyday word in conversation and most writing; automobile is more formal and common in American English official or historical contexts.
- motorcar
- An older British term, now rather old-fashioned; automobile is still used in American English.
- vehicle
- A general word for any means of transport, including buses and trucks; automobile is specifically a passenger car.
Word family
- automotive adjective
- Relating to cars and other motor vehicles.
- automobilist noun
- An old-fashioned word for a person who drives a car.
Commonly confused: automobile or mobile?
automobile vs mobile
A mobile is a phone or a decoration that hangs and moves; an automobile is a car. The words are related in origin but not interchangeable.
Practice
The company is a leading ___ manufacturer, producing over a million cars a year.
Choose one answer.
'Automobile manufacturer' is a common fixed phrase meaning a company that makes cars. 'Automotive' is an adjective and would need a different structure, e.g. 'automotive manufacturer' is possible but less common for a car company. 'Automobilist' is a person and 'automation' is a process, so neither fits.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “automobile”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.