ˈvēˌikəl also ˈvēˌhik- or ˈvēə̇k- sometimes vēˈhik- or viˈh- noun
( -s )
Usage: often attributive
Etymology: French véhicule transmitting agent, vehicle, from Latin vehiculum carriage, conveyance, from vehere to carry — more at way
1.
a. : an inert substance (as syrup, lard, or liquid petrolatum) in a medicinal compound through which an active agent is administered or by which other ingredients are held together : diluent , excipient
b. : a liquid ingredient of other mixtures: as
(1) : a fluid in which something is dissolved or held in suspension
filled his glass of tomato juice half full of salt so that … the juice became scarcely more than a vehicle for the salt — C.P.Richter
lapping abrasive has been used successfully with vehicles of all kinds: water, soluble oils, cottonseed oil — E. Leslie Anderson
(2) : the binder and volatile thinners of a finishing material (as paint or lacquer)
(3) : the varnish in printing ink
(4) : a fluid or other substance in which light-sensitive salts for coating photographic plates are contained
c. : medium 9b
2.
a. : an agent of transmission : carrier
water, food, insects, and inanimate objects may be vehicles of infection — V.M.Ehlers & E.W.Steel
the conception of blood as the vehicle of life — J.G.Frazer
man … as a vehicle of culture — A.L.Kroeber
b. : the literal content of a metaphorical statement — compare tenor 1c
3.
a. : a mode of expression : form , style
words, pictures, and other vehicles of expression — H.O.Taylor
find a new form of verse which shall be as satisfactory a vehicle for us as blank verse was for the Elizabethans — T.S.Eliot
b. : medium 3c
the organ had been for centuries the vehicle of sacred music — A.E.Wier
public schools remain the primary vehicle for the education of our youth — J.B.Conant
using a program of slum clearance as a vehicle … to secure the adoption of other and extraneous legislation — New Republic
the United Nations as the principal vehicle by which world peace may … be reached — Patrick McMahon
specifically : an artistic composition serving to convey a particular conception
these pictures are the vehicles of his spirit — Herbert Read
c. : a Buddhist path to salvation — compare hinayana , mahayana
d. : an outlet for artistic talent
the American minstrel show … as a vehicle for amateurs — C.F.Wittke
specifically : a work created especially to display the powers of a particular performer
a play intended as a starring vehicle for an actress
a piano concerto composed as a vehicle for a famous virtuoso
4. : a material embodiment or repository
capable of exercising choice in the matter of reincarnation vehicles — H.B.Piper
5. : a means of carrying or transporting something : conveyance: as
a. : a carrier of goods or passengers
the most used vehicle was the mule — James Bird
the locomotive is well under way by the time the last vehicles are started from rest — O.S.Nock
aerial vehicles such as airplanes, and submerged vehicles such as … submarines — Fritz Zwicky
for summer hunting … the kayak is their indispensable vehicle — C.D.Forde
specifically : motor vehicle
exhaust from road vehicles
the turning radii of the transit vehicle determines the length of the bus stop — B.H.Sexton
b. : a container in which something is conveyed
the research vehicles — the satellites and the lunar probes — H.H.Martin
have the space vehicle trakced from the earth — L.S.Brown
c. : a piece of mechanized equipment
tractors and farm vehicles — Statesman's Year Book
tanks, half-tracks and other combat vehicles — Time
d. : a propulsive device
launching vehicle lifts the satellite into orbit — Space Talk
Synonyms: see mean