Synonyms
Examples of auto in a Sentence
Ben Finley, Quartz, 13 Apr. 2024
Pierce was facing charges of auto theft and evading arrest in the case.
—Nicole Lopez, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 13 Apr. 2024
Some engineers and top auto executives are beginning to question the superiority of electric sports cars, which have become a contentious topic among enthusiasts.
—Morgan Korn, ABC News, 13 Apr. 2024
Include credit cards and student, auto or personal loans, etc.
—Allison Mann, Washington Post, 12 Apr. 2024
The 18-year-old suspect was arrested last month on auto theft charges and released without bond, Davis said.
—Alex Sundby, CBS News, 12 Apr. 2024
Every job at a carmaker helps sustain nearly a dozen elsewhere
The auto industry is a barometer for the overall health of a country’s manufacturing sector.
—Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 12 Apr. 2024
But Nucor and other steelmakers using electric furnaces have been unable to produce the quality of steel needed by the auto industry — despite decades of trying — partly because their business model means its more profitable to make mass quantities of lower grade steel, said Gibbs.
—Chris Isidore, CNN, 12 Apr. 2024
And prices for big-ticket durable items – think autos, furniture and appliances – continue to decline.
—Jonathan Lansner, Orange County Register, 10 Apr. 2024
Eric D. Lawrence, Detroit Free Press, 28 Feb. 2023
So which makes the best semi-auto shotgun?
—Phil Bourjaily, Field & Stream, 25 Jan. 2021
One of the few semi-auto 17 WSM rifles is the Franklin armory F17-L.
—Richard Mann, Outdoor Life, 27 Feb. 2023
Also: a slick semi-auto espresso machine for $4,700 and a large neon sign depicting the blue Twitter bird logo — yours for about $23,000.
—Adela Suliman, BostonGlobe.com, 18 Jan. 2023
Also: a slick semi-auto espresso machine for $4,700, and a large neon electrical sign depicting the ubiquitous blue Twitter bird logo — yours for about $23,000.
—Adela Suliman, Washington Post, 15 Jan. 2023
The Mark IV solved the biggest issue many shooters had with Ruger’s classic Mark II semi-auto, with its one-button takedown system.
—Will Brantley, Field & Stream, 18 Sep. 2020
He also is suspected of firing a gun in New Britain — again, no one was hurt — and three times fleeing police who were on a special anti-auto theft detail in Newington.
—Christine Dempsey, courant.com, 11 Jan. 2022
The man also described the gun that was pointed at him as a dull silver semi-auto, possibly a Sig-Sauer brand gun, documents say.
—oregonlive, 28 Oct. 2021
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'auto.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Noun
by shortening
Adjective
by shortening
Combining form
borrowed from Greek, combining form of autós "self, the same" (also as third person pronoun), of uncertain origin
Note: For autós R. Beekes posits as the Indo-European forerunner *h2eu̯- "again" + *to- "that" (see that entry 1); *h2eu̯- alone is the source of Greek aû "again, another time, in turn, next" (Etymological Dictionary of Greek, Brill, 2009). G.E. Dunkel, who accepts Indo-European *a as a vowel and does not believe that all words must begin with a consonant, subsumes the first element of autós under *au̯- "away, off" (*au̯-tó- would hence originally have been a deictic, "the one over there") and subsumes Greek aû under *h2u-, by-form of *h2o- "with it, at it, and, also" (Lexikon der indogermanischen Partikeln und Pronominalstämme, Heidelberg, 2014). Older etymological proposals (as a link between au- in autós and Sanskrit ásuḥ "life") are summarized by E. Schwyzer in Griechische Grammatik (Munich, 1990 [1938]), pp. 613-14.
Phrases Containing auto
Dictionary Entries Near auto
Cite this Entry
“Auto.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/auto. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
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More from Merriam-Webster on auto
Nglish: Translation of auto for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of auto for Arabic Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about auto
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