Sedan
/sɪˈdæn/noun
A closed automobile with a separate trunk compartment and two or four doors.
Did you know?The automobile sense is an abbreviation of “sedan car,” preserving the memory of the sedan chair’s enclosed passenger compartment.
Etymological Timeline
17th Century
French
sedan
“A sedan chair, or enclosed portable chair carried by bearers”
1630s
English
sedan
“An enclosed chair carried by two or more people”
17th–18th Century
English
sedan chair
“A covered passenger chair used as private urban transport”
Early 20th Century
English
sedan car
“An enclosed automobile modeled in name on the sedan chair”
1910s
American English
sedan
“A closed automobile with a fixed roof and separate passenger compartment”
Modern English
English
sedan
“A common passenger-car body style, typically with four doors and a distinct trunk”