carfax
carfax Lexical Profile
carfax Game Scores & Validity
• noun
North American A detailed vehicle history report used to check a used car's past ownership, accident history, and maintenance records.
"Before finalizing the purchase of the used sedan, the dealer provided a carfax to prove it had a clean title and no accident history."
British A place where four roads or streets meet; a central crossroads in a town or city.
"We arranged to meet at the carfax in the center of Oxford before heading to the university library."
Word Nuance & Usage
In British English, 'carfax' traditionally refers to a historic central crossroads, notably in Oxford. In North America, the term is almost exclusively used as a metonym for a vehicle history report, derived from the trademarked commercial service CARFAX.
Word Origin & Etymology
Derived from Old French 'carrefour' (crossroads), which traces back to the Latin 'quadrifurcus', meaning 'four-forked' (from 'quattuor' meaning four and 'furca' meaning fork).
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.