Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A small, flatbottom amphibious vehicle that moves by means of finned tracks and is used to carry troops from ship to shore.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun military A class of amphibious vehicles introduced in World War II.

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[am(phibious) + trac(tor).]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Blend of amphibious and tractor

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Examples

  • Phil Ward, leaping out of the amtrac that also contained my father, had a similar epiphany: We'd had live ammo training in Hawaii, so I was used to the sound of bullets, but suddenly I realized why this was different.

    Excerpt: Flags of Our Fathers by James Bradley 2000

  • "I was watching an amtrac to the side of us as we went in," Robert Leader remembers.

    Excerpt: Flags of Our Fathers by James Bradley 2000

  • Seven Marines lay unconscious atop the burning amtrac.

    ONE SHOT-ONE KILL CHARLES W. SASSER CRAIG ROBERTS 1990

  • Still, the thoughts of killing and dying roared through my head like a runaway amtrac on a foreign beach:

    ONE SHOT-ONE KILL CHARLES W. SASSER CRAIG ROBERTS 1990

  • … One thing we could assume was that our secrecy was blown right out of those amtrac tail pipes.

    The Story of World War II Donald L. Miller 1945

  • None of us had considered the noise of the amtrac convoy….

    The Story of World War II Donald L. Miller 1945

  • … One thing we could assume was that our secrecy was blown right out of those amtrac tail pipes.

    The Story of World War II Donald L. Miller 1945

  • Later I ran across the beach with her and got into another amtrac.

    The Story of World War II Donald L. Miller 1945

  • None of us had considered the noise of the amtrac convoy….

    The Story of World War II Donald L. Miller 1945

  • Later I ran across the beach with her and got into another amtrac.

    The Story of World War II Donald L. Miller 1945

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