omnibus
UK /ˈɒmnɪbəs/ · US /ˈɑmnɪbəs/ noun, adjective, verb
Forms omnibuses omnibusses omnibi omnibusing omnibussing omnibused omnibussed
- noun (dated) A bus (vehicle for transporting large numbers of people along roads).
- noun An anthology of previously released material linked together by theme or author, especially in book form. “This work is an omnibus containing all books in the Remembrance of Earth’s Past series.”
- noun A broadcast programme consisting of all of the episodes of a serial that have been shown in the previous week. “The omnibus edition of The Archers is broadcast every Sunday morning at 11:00.”
- noun (philately) A stamp issue, usually commemorative, that appears simultaneously in several countries as a joint issue.
- noun (obsolete, slang, chiefly US) An assistant waiter.
- noun an omnibus box.
- adjective Containing multiple items. “The legislature enacted an omnibus appropriations bill.”
- adjective Of a transportation service, calling at every station, as opposed to express; local.
- verb (transitive) To combine (legislative bills, etc.) into a single package.
- verb (intransitive, dated) To drive an omnibus.
- verb (intransitive, dated) To travel or be transported by omnibus.
Synonyms
busboy busser bus autobus coach charabanc double-decker jitney motorbus motorcoach passenger vehicle
Etymology
Borrowed from French (voiture) omnibus (“(carriage) for all”), from Latin omnibus (“for all”), dative plural of omnis (“all”).
Webster’s 1913
- noun A long four-wheeled carriage, having seats for many people; especially, one with seats running lengthwise, used in conveying passengers short distances.
- noun A sheet-iron cover for articles in a leer or annealing arch, to protect them from drafts. Omnibus bill, a legislative bill which provides for a number of miscellaneous enactments or appropriations.
Etymology [L., for all, dat. pl. from omnis all. Cf. Bus.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “omnibus”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details