char-à-banc

or char·a·banc

[ shar-uh-bang, -bangk; French sha-ra-bahn ]

noun,plural char-à-bancs [-bangz, -bangks; French sha-ra-bahn]. /-ˌbæŋz, -ˌbæŋks; French ʃa raˈbɑ̃/. British.
  1. a large bus used on sightseeing tours, especially one with open sides and no center aisle.

Origin of char-à-banc

1
1810–20; back formation from French char-à-bancs literally, car with benches, the -s being taken as plural ending of word as a whole

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use char-à-banc in a sentence

  • Magdaléna came down to the verandah a few moments before the char-à-banc drove up.

    The Californians | Gertrude Franklin Horn Atherton
  • He felt genuinely sorry for her, but his only part was to get out and hand these radiant visions into the char-à-banc.

    The Californians | Gertrude Franklin Horn Atherton
  • A heavy char-à-banc rolled by, and the words of Tiny and Ila came distinctly to the two in hiding.

    The Californians | Gertrude Franklin Horn Atherton
  • Some people, therefore, describe a char à banc as a sofa placed endwise on wheels.

    Rollo in Switzerland | Jacob Abbott
  • The char à banc stopped before the door of the hotel; and the coachman, getting down from his seat in front, opened the door.

    Rollo in Switzerland | Jacob Abbott

British Dictionary definitions for charabanc

charabanc

/ (ˈʃærəˌbæŋ, French ʃarabɑ̃) /


noun
  1. British obsolete a motor coach, esp one used for sightseeing tours

Origin of charabanc

1
C19: from French char-à-bancs, wagon with seats

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012