What does sedan mean?
A sedan is a type of passenger car with an enclosed body, commonly two or four doors, and a separate compartment for luggage. Its defining feature is the division between the passenger cabin and the rear storage space, traditionally called the trunk. The term is especially common in American English, while British and other Commonwealth English often use “saloon” as the equivalent automotive term. Although the word can sound old-fashioned, it remains standard in modern vehicle classifications and advertising. Sedans are generally associated with comfort, practicality, and a lower or more streamlined profile than many other car types. The word also has a historical meaning: before motor vehicles became widespread, a sedan was an enclosed carriage for passengers, and the expression “sedan chair” preserves the sense of a covered seat carried by attendants. The modern car meaning grew out of that earlier carriage terminology.
nounA passenger car with an enclosed body and a separate compartment for luggage, traditionally having two doors. The term formerly referred to an enclosed carriage drawn by horses or other animals.
- A passenger car with an enclosed body, normally with two or four doors and a separate luggage compartment.
- Historically, an enclosed carriage designed to carry passengers, usually drawn by animals.
"They drove a comfortable sedan to the airport."
"The manufacturer redesigned its flagship sedan for the new model year."
"A sedan chair was carried by attendants along the streets of eighteenth-century London."
The plural is sedans, pronounced with the same stress and vowel sounds as the singular.
"The dealership had several used sedans available."
Today’s sedan takes its name from the Italian word for a chair, via a history that began with carrying passengers in an enclosed chair.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does sedan come from?
The word entered English in the seventeenth century from French sedan, a form of carriage with an enclosed passenger compartment. French borrowed the term from Italian sedia, meaning “chair” or “seat,” which derived from Latin sedia, a seat for one person. The Latin roots connect the word with the larger family of forms derived from Latin sedere, “to sit,” including sedentary, sediment, sessile, and sedulous.
Related word forms
How sedan is actually used
In modern automotive usage, the word normally identifies a passenger car with a separate trunk or luggage compartment. “Saloon” is also widely used for this body style in British English, especially in Britain, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, and other regions influenced by British car terminology. Historically, “sedan” also referred to a covered passenger carriage.
Easily confused with sedan
A sedan has a separate luggage compartment at the rear, whereas a station wagon has a long roofline extending over the cargo area and is typically accessed through a rear hatch.