carful

carful — noun

1. the number of people or the amount of things that can fit inside a single car

1.nounB2
Definition

the number of people or the amount of things that can fit inside a single car

Example

Amara loaded a carful of camping supplies and drove to the lake.

a carful of + plural noun

A carful of passengers arrived at the wedding just before the ceremony.

Common collocations
  • a carful of luggage
  • a whole carful of supplies
  • an entire carful of people
Synonyms
  • carload

    more formal; typically used for commercial goods rather than people

Grammar Patterns

a carful of + plural noun

a carful of + uncountable noun

Usage Note

Always used with 'of': the pattern is 'a carful of something.' Without 'of,' the word sounds incomplete to most English speakers.

Common Mistakes

He was carful not to spill the paint.
He was careful not to spill the paint.
'Carful' is a noun meaning the amount a car holds; 'careful' is the adjective meaning cautious.
We brought a carful children to the park.
We brought a carful of children to the park.
'Carful' must be followed by 'of.'

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Carful and carload both describe what one car can carry. Carful is more common in everyday speech, especially for people ('a carful of children'). Carload is more formal and often used in business or transport contexts ('a carload of timber'). Load is a broader word that can refer to any amount carried by any vehicle, person, or animal. Compare: 'They arrived with a carful of cousins' (informal, people), 'The company shipped a carload of steel beams' (commercial, goods), and 'The donkey carried a heavy load of firewood' (any burden, any carrier).

carload ↗load ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • a carful of
  • a whole carful of
  • an entire carful of

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinAnglo-Norman FrenchOld EnglishEnglish

Formed from 'car' (from Anglo-Norman French carre, ultimately from Latin carrus meaning 'wagon') and the Old English suffix '-ful' meaning 'the amount that fills something.' The word follows the pattern of other quantity nouns like 'handful' and 'mouthful,' and entered everyday use in the early 20th century as cars became common.