What does "lorry" mean?
A large and heavy motor vehicle designed to carry goods or soldiers; a truck
Lorry
/ˈlɒɹi/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Uncommon ·College level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A large and heavy motor vehicle designed to carry goods or soldiers; a truck
- Grammar: lorry is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: camion, cargo truck, freight truck, goods vehicle.
- Useful contrasts: car, passenger car.
- Usage evidence: In Britain a truck is referred to as a lorry.
How to use "lorry"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "lorry" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "lorry" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "lorry" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "lorry" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "lorry" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "camion" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "lorry", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A large and heavy motor vehicle designed to carry goods or soldiers; a truck Africa, British, Ireland, South-Asia
"But whenever one of the motor-trucks lumbering by bore a big U.S. on its rear panel Troy pushed his light ambulance ahead and skimmed past, just for the joy of seeing the fresh young heads rising pyramid-wise about the sides of the lorry, hearing the snatches of familiar songs—"Hail, hail, the gang's all here!" and "We won't come back till it's over over here!"—and shouting back in reply to a stentorian "Hi, kid, beat it!", "Bet your life I will, old man!""
- 2 a large truck designed to carry heavy loads; usually without sides wordnet
- 3 A truck with an open carriage, sometimes used for transporting construction workers. Malaysia, Singapore
- 4 a large low horse-drawn wagon without sides wordnet
- 5 A barrow or truck for shifting baggage, as at railway stations. dated
Show 2 more definitions
- 6 A small cart or wagon used on the tramways in mines to carry coal or rubbish. dated
"The mixing 48-in. belts lie flat and run from the bottom of the mixer bins to two coal mixers which deliver the coal to a reversing 42-in. belt conveyor, taking it to either one of two 36-in. belts, running to the top of two larry bins. Each larry bin is located between two batteries of ovens, [...] Under the larry bins are provided platform scales which enable the larry operator to fill his larry with the exact amount of coal to charge an oven."
- 7 A large, low, horse-drawn, four-wheeled cart without sides; also, a similar wagon modified for use on railways. obsolete
"In order that these very important mails might not be unnecessarily delayed, we procured an express engine, and having, as is customary in such cases, fastened those for Manchester and the North on a larry between the engine and the Post-office, they being too bulky to travel in the latter, we departed at 8.10, [...] On our arrival at the next station, Crewe, we were much alarmed at the intelligence received from the engineer, that one of the bags on the larry, which proved to be the Carlisle, was on fire: [...]"
Verb
- 1 To transport by, or as if by, lorry. also, figuratively, transitive
"He lorried away with a whole pile of things, and cheated the bailiffs."
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
carpassenger car
Example
"In Britain a truck is referred to as a lorry."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "lorry"?
Common synonyms include: camion, cargo truck, freight truck, goods vehicle, hauler, haulers.
How do you use "lorry" in a sentence?
In Britain a truck is referred to as a lorry.
How do you pronounce "lorry"?
Pronounced /ˈlɒɹi/.
Etymology
Uncertain; perhaps from dialectal English lurry (“to lug or pull about, drag”) (compare dialectal lurry-cart), or from the forename Laurie. First attested in early to middle 19th century.