Bentley

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A British maker of high-end luxury automobiles known for powerful grand touring coupes ; a family name of English origin carried by many different people
2. A prestigious British manufacturer of hand-finished luxury cars ; an English family name shared by numerous people across generations
3. A premium automobile marque from Britain famous for opulent grand tourers ; a surname of English origin found among many individuals

Etymology: Bentley is a surname and place name long before it became the name of a car. It comes from Old English "Beonetlēah," a Sussex place name formed from "bent," the coarse grass that grew on heaths, and "lēah," meaning a field or meadow. The name therefore describes a meadow of bent-grass, and the same root appears in the surname Bentham. The word's modern meaning came from a man, not a village. W. O. Bentley founded Bentley Motors, and the company's cars took his surname as their name. Over time "a Bentley" came to mean the luxury automobile itself, so a common family name now primarily refers to one brand of car.