smoke wagon
/ˈsmoʊk ˌwæɡən/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.83 in modern English
20
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
2
Syllables
9
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A vehicle that generates smoke; specifically, an automobile or a train.
American usage; Archaic; Slang
Example Sentences
- "If you gwine afoot, it'll take you about a day; if you gwine in de stage or de homneybuss, you make it in half a day; but if you get in one ob dese smoke-waggons, you be almost dar now!"
- "The village priests were seen to go to and fro by train, and the simple country folk thought that what they did could not be wrong. By degrees the peasants themselves began to try the "smoke-wagons" too, […]"
- "Indians of Idaho are losing their superstitious feeling about the "smoke wagon," as they call an automobile, and the rush to get machines has started among the more intelligent and wealthy tribesmen."
- "I am not old enough to remember those one- and two-cylinder primitives that first chugged on the scene around the turn of the century. But those who can remember attest to the fact that they came in with billowing plumes of smoke in their wake. Indeed, "smoke-wagon" was commonly their derisive designation. You can still see why, if you witness a demonstration of antique cars restored to their prime by proud owners today."
- "[T]he President said nothing on how to protect our lungs from the some 70 million smoke wagons currently on the road."
- "[…] Bourcey, the blacksmith, who was fitting on a mule's shoe, returned with the shoe at the end of the tongs, and, thrusting it into the fire, began blowing the bellows. It was laughable to see the stampede among the redskins when they saw this ominous maneuver—they thought he was going to fire the "smoke wagon.""
Etymology
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈsmoʊk ˌwæɡən/
- British English: /ˈsməʊk ˌwæɡ(ə)n/