taxi
n. countablen. a car with a driver that you pay to take you exactly where you want to go.
n. a motor vehicle licensed to transport passengers in exchange for a fare, typically calculated by a taximeter based on distance and time.
I will take a taxi to the airport tomorrow morning.
It is often difficult to find a taxi in the city center during a heavy rainstorm.
While ride-sharing apps have disrupted the industry, the traditional taxi remains a vital component of urban transit for those without smartphones or reliable internet access.
Shortened from taximeter cab, taximeter (“automatic meter that records distance and fare”) from French taximètre, from German Taxameter (whence also English taxameter), coined from Medieval Latin taxa (“tax, charge”). More at tax, task. The aviation sense originally derived for a slang term for training aircraft used for practicing ground operations, which were said to drive around the airfield like a taxicab, and subsequently applied to all aircraft ground movements.
Often used with the verbs 'take', 'hail', or 'call'.
I go by a taxiI go by taxiWhen using 'by' to describe a mode of transport, the article 'a' or 'the' is omitted.