ute

Everyday

1. (Australia, NZ) A small truck or car with an open back for carrying things; short for «utility vehicle». tree →
2. (US, informal) Sometimes short for a sport utility vehicle (SUV), but this is rare. tree →

In the lessons

Very common in Australia and New Zealand, especially on farms and for builders. In stories set there, a farmer drives his ute with a dog on the back. In maths problems, a ute may carry a load with a weight limit.

Examples

• Dad threw the tools in the back of the ute. tree →
• The farmer's dog rode in the ute to the paddock. tree →
• We hired a ute to move the old sofa. tree →
• My uncle's ute is covered in red dust. tree →
• The ute can carry 1 tonne, so 4 crates of 300 kilograms are too much. tree →
• A shiny new ute was parked outside the pub. tree →

Note

Say «yoot». Takes «a», not «an» (it starts with a «you» sound). Short for «utility». In the USA and UK the same vehicle is a «pickup» or «pick-up truck». Note: dogs riding loose in the back is unsafe and against the law in some places.