van
van1 / van/ • n. a covered boxlike motor vehicle, typically having a rear door and sliding doors on the side panels, used for transporting goods or people. ∎ a covered truck used for moving goods, esp. furniture. ∎ Brit. a caravan.van2 • n. (the van) the foremost part of a company of people moving or preparing to move forward, esp. the foremost division of an advancing military force: in the van were the foremost chiefs and some of the warriors astride horses. ∎ fig. the forefront: he was in the van of the movement to encourage the cultivation of wildflowers.van3 • n. 1. archaic a winnowing fan. 2. archaic or poetic/lit. a bird's wing.
van
van1 winnowing basket or shovel XV; shovel used in testing ore, etc. XVII; (poet.) wing; sail of a windmill XIX. south, and western var. of FAN1, prob. reinforced by (O)F. van or L. vannus.
VAN
VAN Abbrev. for value-added network. See VADS, managed data network service.
Van
Van
a company of troops moving forward; the forward section of such a company or train of persons, 1633.
Examples : van of armies, 1879; of circumstances, 1820; of insurgents, 1816; of the Celtic migrations, 1850; of the procession, 1878; of testimonies, 1772; of the war, 1716.
van
van3 covered vehicle for conveying goods. XIX. Shortening of CARAVAN.