An ambulance is a special vehicle designed to rush sick or injured people to the hospital as quickly and safely as possible. Inside, trained medical workers called paramedics or emergency medical technicians can begin treating patients even while driving, using equipment like oxygen tanks, bandages, and monitors that track heart rate and breathing.

Ambulances carry flashing lights and loud sirens to warn other drivers to move aside, because in an emergency, every second counts. When you hear a siren and see the flashing lights, cars pull over to let the ambulance pass, because someone's life might depend on getting to the hospital fast.

The word comes from a time when wounded soldiers needed to be carried from battlefields to hospitals. Today's ambulances are much more advanced, but they serve the same vital purpose: bringing emergency medical care to people who need it, wherever they are.