Jump to content

trailer

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
See also: tráiler and Trailer

English

[edit]
English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia
A trailer (noun sense 3) used to carry equipment)
A trailer (noun sense 3) used to carry equipment)
A car pulling a trailer (noun sense 4)
A trailer (noun sense 5)

Etymology

[edit]

From trail +‎ -er. The film sense derives from the fact that previews were formerly shown after the main feature, rather than before as is usual today, that is trailing after the main feature.

Pronunciation

[edit]

Noun

[edit]

trailer (plural trailers)

  1. Someone who or something that trails (follows behind); something that is trailing.
    • 2014, Chris Ekpekurede, Laughing Over Serious Matters: Stories to Make You Laugh and Reflect:
      There were vehicles following me, of course, but was any of them trailing me? […] Without any warning, and without signalling with the trafficator, I took a sudden right turn, hoping to shake off my trailer.
  2. Part of an object which extends some distance beyond the main body of the object.
    Synonyms: appendage, attachment, appendix, extension, extrusion
    the trailer of a plant
  3. An unpowered wheeled vehicle (not a caravan or camper) that is towed behind another, and used to carry equipment, etc., that cannot be carried in the leading vehicle.
    At the end of the day, we put the snowmobiles back on the trailer.
    • 1980 April, Greg Stone, “Utility hauling? Do it with your boat trailer”, in Popular Science, page 104:
      My trailer is a Highlander T-14 8G, one of the smallest trailers. I normally use it for carrying a pair of Sunfish sailboats that are much lighter than its 800-pound weight limit.
    • 2004, Mike Byrnes & Associates, Bumper to Bumper: The Complete Guide to Tractor-Trailer Operations, page 310:
      Or you can slide the trailer′s tandem forward toward the tractor. This changes the kingpin weight because you changed the “A” dimension of the trailer along with its wheel-base.
    • 2009, Norman Edward Robinson, Kim A. Sprayberry, Current Therapy in Equine Medicine, page 122:
      There is also a strong preference to avoid the cave effect associated with the front of most horse trailers and a strong desire to face the large opening between the top of the rear doors and the roof of the trailer.
  4. (US) A furnished vehicle towed behind another, and used as a dwelling when stationary.
    Synonyms: (US) camper, (UK) caravan, travel trailer
    We drove our trailer to Yellowstone Park.
  5. (US) A prefabricated home that could be towed to a new destination but is typically permanently left in an area designated for such homes.
    Synonym: mobile home
    The young couple′s first home was in a trailer.
  6. (chiefly US, media) A preview of a film, video game or TV show.
    Synonyms: preview, teaser
    The trailer for that movie makes it seem like it would be fun.
    • 2026 September 11, Robert Shrimsley, “Does anyone still go to the cinema?”, in Financial Times‎[1]:
      It is possible to find cinemas that attract a more decorous audience. One of my regular haunts offers very expensive and rather quiet treats. Another serves full meals and wine at your seat, to be consumed by the time the trailers end.
  7. A short blank segment of film at the end of a reel, for convenient insertion of the film in a projector.
  8. (computing) The final record of a list of data items, often identified by a key field with an otherwise invalid value that sorts last alphabetically (e.g., “ZZZZZ”) or numerically (“99999”); especially common in the context of punched cards, where the final card is called a trailer card.
    Synonym: sentinel
    The linked list terminates with a trailer record.
  9. (networking) The last part of a packet, often containing a check sequence.
    Antonym: header
    The encapsulation layer adds an eight-byte header and a two-byte trailer to each packet.

Usage notes

[edit]
  • In Australia and the UK, use of trailer in the sense of “preview of a film” is gaining currency over the synonym preview, due to US influence.

Derived terms

[edit]

Descendants

[edit]

Translations

[edit]
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Verb

[edit]

trailer (third-person singular simple present trailers, present participle trailering, simple past and past participle trailered)

  1. To load on a trailer or to transport by trailer.
    The engine wouldn't run any more so we had to trailer my old car to the wrecking yard.

Anagrams

[edit]

Czech

[edit]

Etymology

[edit]

    Unadapted borrowing from English trailer.

    Pronunciation

    [edit]
    • IPA(key): [ˈtrajlɛr], [ˈtrɛjlɛr]

    Noun

    [edit]

    trailer m inan

    1. trailer (preview of a film, TV show, or video game)
      Synonym: upoutávka

    Declension

    [edit]

    Further reading

    [edit]

    Danish

    [edit]

    Noun

    [edit]

    trailer c (singular definite traileren, plural indefinite trailere)

    1. (automotive) trailer (vehicle towed behind another vehicle)
    2. (media) trailer (preview of a film, TV show, or video game)

    Declension

    [edit]
    Declension of trailer
    common
    gender
    singular plural
    indefinite definite indefinite definite
    nominative trailer traileren trailere trailerene
    genitive trailers trailerens traileres trailerenes

    Dutch

    [edit]

    Etymology

    [edit]

    Borrowed from English trailer.

    Pronunciation

    [edit]
    • IPA(key): /ˈtreː.lər/
    • Audio:(file)
    • Hyphenation: trai‧ler

    Noun

    [edit]

    trailer m (plural trailers, no diminutive)

    1. trailer (unpowered vehicle towed behind another)
      Synonyms: aanhangwagen, oplegger
    2. semi-trailer truck
    3. trailer, camper, caravan (furnished vehicle towed behind another)
      Synonyms: caravan, kampeerwagen, woonwagen
    4. trailer (preview of a film, video game or TV show)

    Descendants

    [edit]

    Indonesian

    [edit]

    Etymology

    [edit]

    From Dutch trailer, from English trailer.

    Pronunciation

    [edit]
    • IPA(key): [ˈt̪rai̯.lər]
    • Hyphenation: trai‧lêr

    Noun

    [edit]

    trailêr (plural trailer-trailer)

    1. semi-trailer
      Synonym: anhang
    2. (film) trailer, a preview of a film, video game or TV show
      Synonyms: pracuplik, pratayang

    Alternative forms

    [edit]

    Further reading

    [edit]

    Polish

    [edit]
    Polish Wikipedia has an article on:
    Wikipedia pl

    Etymology

    [edit]

      Unadapted borrowing from English trailer.

      Pronunciation

      [edit]

      Noun

      [edit]

      trailer m inan

      1. (film, marketing) trailer (preview of a film)
        Synonyms: pilot, teaser, zwiastun
      2. trailer (unpowered wheeled vehicle that is towed behind another, and used to carry equipment, with the exception of a caravan)
        Synonym: przyczepa

      Declension

      [edit]

      Further reading

      [edit]
      • “trailer”, in Wielki słownik języka polskiego‎[2] (in Polish), Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
      • “trailer”, in Polish dictionaries at PWN‎[3] (in Polish)

      Portuguese

      [edit]
      Portuguese Wikipedia has an article on:
      Wikipedia pt

      Alternative forms

      [edit]

      Etymology

      [edit]

        Unadapted borrowing from English trailer.

        Pronunciation

        [edit]
         

        Noun

        [edit]

        trailer m (plural trailers)

        1. (film, television) trailer (short preview of a film)
        2. (Brazil) caravan (furnished vehicle used as a dwelling)
          Synonyms: (Portugal) caravana, (Portugal) rulote, (Portugal) roulotte
        3. (Brazil) trailer (vehicle towed behind another, used for carrying equipment)
          Synonyms: reboque, (Portugal) atrelado

        Further reading

        [edit]

        Romanian

        [edit]

        Etymology

        [edit]

          Borrowed from English trailer.

          Noun

          [edit]

          trailer n (plural trailere)

          1. trailer

          Declension

          [edit]
          singular plural
          indefinite definite indefinite definite
          nominative-accusative trailer trailerul trailere trailerele
          genitive-dative trailer trailerului trailere trailerelor
          vocative trailerule trailerelor

          Spanish

          [edit]

          Etymology

          [edit]

            Unadapted borrowing from English trailer.

            Pronunciation

            [edit]
            • IPA(key): /ˈtɾeileɾ/ [ˈt̪ɾei̯.leɾ]
            • IPA(key): /ˈtɾaileɾ/ [ˈt̪ɾai̯.leɾ]
            • Syllabification: trai‧ler

            Noun

            [edit]

            trailer m (plural trailers)

            1. alternative form of tráiler

            Usage notes

            [edit]
            • According to Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) prescriptions, unadapted foreign words should be written in italics in a text printed in roman type, and vice versa, and in quotation marks in a manuscript text or when italics are not available. In practice, this RAE prescription is not always followed.

            Further reading

            [edit]

            Swedish

            [edit]
            Swedish Wikipedia has an article on:
            Wikipedia sv
            en trailer (semitrailer)

            Etymology

            [edit]

            Borrowed from English trailer. First attested in 1948.

            Noun

            [edit]

            trailer c

            1. (automotive) a (large) trailer (on or towed by a truck)
            2. (media) a trailer (preview of a film, TV show, or video game)

            Usage notes

            [edit]

            A smaller trailer as typically towed by a car is a släpvagn (shortened to släp). Technically, a trailer is also a type of släpvagn.

            Declension

            [edit]

            See also

            [edit]

            References

            [edit]