Meaning & use
right-hand drive
Last updated
Meanings
adjectivebefore a nounBritish
Having the steering wheel on the right side of the car, so the driver sits on the right.
Grammar: Used before a noun: a right-hand drive car. It is not usually used after a verb.
Patterns
- a right-hand drive car
- right-hand drive vehicle
- right-hand drive model
She bought a right-hand drive car because she lives in London.
In Japan, most new cars are right-hand drive.
The rental company only had right-hand drive vans available.
nouncountableBritish
A car or other vehicle with the steering wheel on the right side.
Grammar: Countable: a right-hand drive, two right-hand drives. Often written as RHD.
Patterns
- drive a right-hand drive
- convert to right-hand drive
- right-hand drive is common in
He learned to drive in a right-hand drive.
Right-hand drive is standard in Australia.
The old taxi was a right-hand drive with a spacious back seat.
Word forms
| plural | right-hand drives |
|---|
Common combinations
- right-hand drive car
- A right-hand drive car can feel strange if you are used to driving on the left.
- right-hand drive vehicle
- The law requires a right-hand drive vehicle for this type of license.
- right-hand drive model
- This right-hand drive model is popular in the UK.
- convert to right-hand drive
- It is expensive to convert a left-hand drive car to right-hand drive.
Synonyms and how they differ
- RHD
- The abbreviation is very common in ads and technical writing.
Opposites
Word family
- left-hand drive adjective
- Having the steering wheel on the left side.
- drive verb
- To operate a car or other vehicle.
Commonly confused: right-hand drive or left-hand drive?
right-hand drive vs left-hand drive
Left-hand drive means the steering wheel is on the left, common in the US and Europe. Right-hand drive means it is on the right, common in the UK and Japan.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'right-hand drive' correctly?
Choose one answer.
Right-hand drive describes a car with the steering wheel on the right, so option A fits. Option B uses it as a verb, which is wrong. Option C is confusing and ungrammatical. Option D contradicts the meaning because left-side steering is left-hand drive.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “right-hand drive”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.