milk float

American  

noun

British.

1. a motor vehicle, usually battery powered, in which bottles or cartons of milk and other dairy products are delivered to homes by a daily or regular route.

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milk float British  

noun

1. a small motor vehicle used to deliver milk to houses

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Etymology

Origin of milk float

First recorded in 1885–90

Example Sentences

His modification of a Land Rover Discovery for calf-feeding rounds - an off-road milk float - earned him third place in the Farmers Weekly inventions competition in 2020.

From BBC • May 27, 2026

Your teenager's academic performance has been like a milk float on a motorway, but try not to betray any sense of parental horror.

From BBC • Aug. 24, 2016

The view from a walkway ‘wide enough for a milk float’.

From The Guardian • Aug. 20, 2011

Regeneration charity Groundwork London is giving a retired milk float a second lease of life as its first electric vehicle.

From The Guardian • Jul. 5, 2010

Len took his orders literally, left his milk float where it was in the road, went home, changed into his uniform and reported to HQ.��

From Coming of Age: 1939-1946 by Cox, John