caravan

American  

[kar-uh-van] / ˈkær əˌvæn /

noun

1. a group of travelers, as merchants or pilgrims, journeying together for safety in passing through deserts, hostile territory, etc.

   Synonyms:

   band, cavalcade, train, procession, parade

2. any group traveling in or as if in a caravan and using a specific mode of transportation, as pack animals or motor vehicles.

   a caravan of trucks; a camel caravan.

3. a large covered vehicle for conveying passengers, goods, a sideshow, etc.; van.

4. Chiefly British. a house on wheels; trailer.

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verb (used with object)

caravaned, caravanned, caravaning, caravanning

1. to carry in or as if in a caravan.

   Trucks caravaned food and medical supplies to the flood's survivors.

verb (used without object)

caravaned, caravanned, caravaning, caravanning

1. to travel in or as if in a caravan.

   They caravaned through Egypt.

caravan British  

/ ˈkærəˌvæn /

noun

1. 1. US and Canadian name: trailer.  a large enclosed vehicle capable of being pulled by a car or lorry and equipped to be lived in

   2. ( as modifier )

      a caravan site

2. (esp in some parts of Asia and Africa) a company of traders or other travellers journeying together, often with a train of camels, through the desert

3. a group of wagons, pack mules, camels, etc, esp travelling in single file

4. a large covered vehicle, esp a gaily coloured one used by Romany Gypsies, circuses, etc

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verb

1. (intr) to travel or have a holiday in a caravan

Other Word Forms

• caravanist noun
• caravanning noun

Etymology

Origin of caravan

1590–1600; earlier carovan < Italian carovana < Persian kārwān

Example Sentences

Consisting of a couple of weatherboard buildings, a general store, a caravan park and a petrol station grouped around a modest main street, Licola is one of Australia's smallest towns.

From BBC

Sudani has also cooperated with the United States to bring into Iraq a caravan of Islamic State prisoners from Syria, where the army recently moved on Kurdish fighters who had run the detention camps.

From Barron's

When the caravan of buses pulls up at Varadero Beach, all of us are delirious with joy.

From Literature

They would often borrow her parents' caravan and the pair had always thought a motorhome might be a good thing.

From BBC

For more than a century, caravans have offered a familiar and affordable way to holiday at home, with the basic layout changing little since the first motor-towed models appeared in 1919.

From BBC

Related Words

• cavalcade
• convoy
• expedition
• procession