Odometer
/oʊˈdɑːmɪtər/noun
An instrument for measuring the distance traveled by a vehicle.
Did you know?The word was coined in the late 18th century from Greek hodos (“road, path”) + metron (“measure”), so every time you check mileage, you’re using a name built from the language of roads and measurement.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
hodos
“road, way, path”
Ancient Greek
Greek
metron
“measure”
Late 18th Century
English
odometer
“an instrument for measuring distance traveled by a vehicle”
19th Century
English
odometer
“a standard mechanical distance counter for carriages and vehicles”
Modern English
English
odometer
“a device that records distance traveled”