1
as in vanguard
the innovators of new concepts, styles, and techniques especially in the arts
an artist who was in the van of abstract expressionism
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in forefront
the leading or most important part of a movement
a company that is considered by some to be in the van of the latest technology for renewable energy
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of van
Additional features include 143 dock-high doors, 4 drive-in doors, 459 van/car stalls and outside storage.
—
Jessica Alvarado Gamez, Denver Post, 16 Sep. 2025
Now the company makes the high-end R1T pickup truck and the R1S sport utility vehicle in Normal, Illinois, as well as delivery vans for Amazon and others.
—Preston Fore, Fortune, 16 Sep. 2025
Prosecutors had tried pointing to two cases – the 1994 shooting of a van full of Hasidic yeshiva students on the Brooklyn Bridge, and the 1997 shooting from the observation deck of the Empire State Building – as terroristic acts that ended with just one deceased victim.
—Dakin Andone, CNN Money, 16 Sep. 2025
Gomez allegedly struck Alvarez, her mother and stepfather before reversing into an unoccupied van.
—Nicole Acosta, PEOPLE, 16 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for van
Jessica Alvarado Gamez, Denver Post, 16 Sep. 2025
Now the company makes the high-end R1T pickup truck and the R1S sport utility vehicle in Normal, Illinois, as well as delivery vans for Amazon and others.
—Preston Fore, Fortune, 16 Sep. 2025
Prosecutors had tried pointing to two cases – the 1994 shooting of a van full of Hasidic yeshiva students on the Brooklyn Bridge, and the 1997 shooting from the observation deck of the Empire State Building – as terroristic acts that ended with just one deceased victim.
—Dakin Andone, CNN Money, 16 Sep. 2025
Gomez allegedly struck Alvarez, her mother and stepfather before reversing into an unoccupied van.
—Nicole Acosta, PEOPLE, 16 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for van
Recent Examples of Synonyms for van
Noun
-
He’s so far collaborated with acts like Ecco2k and Xaviersobased, themselves vanguards of the underground-rap scene.—
Jeff Ihaza,
Rolling Stone,
9 Sep. 2025
-
Waymo’s self-driving cars are a vanguard of this movement, a vehicle that can perceive its surroundings and make decisions in real time.—
Divyaditya Shrivastava,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
As the first female CEO of a major music publisher and the first woman to chair a global music company, Gerson brings more than three decades of leadership at the forefront of culture.—
Alexandra Harrell,
Sourcing Journal,
19 Sep. 2025
-
The state's temperature is also warming at a rate two to three times the global average, putting Alaska at the forefront of climate change concerns.—
Jasmine Laws,
MSNBC Newsweek,
19 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Burnham Yard also is near an Environmental Protection Agency Superfund site for radium contamination, but the Terracon report did not find any indication that there is a substantial amount of radioactive material underground.—
Elliott Wenzler,
Denver Post,
14 Sep. 2025
-
But now European and American scientists are exploring whether the first human Martians could find refuge via dormant volcanos scattered across the Red Planet, inside lava tubes that criss-cross the Mars underground.—
Kevin Holden Platt,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Settled by Mormon pioneers in the 1880s, Torrey is said to have been named after one of Theodore Roosevelt's Rough Riders, Colonel Torrey.—
Patricia Doherty,
Travel + Leisure,
16 Sep. 2025
-
The group had already connected itself to the Black Sabbath smash via tons of live performances, and thankfully, the fans of the heavy metal pioneers were able to work with the Prince of Darkness before his death in July of this year – and fans may get to hear the cut soon.—
Hugh McIntyre,
Forbes.com,
16 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Van.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/van. Accessed 20 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share