peloton

¹

[ pel-uh-ton, pel-uh-ton; French plaw-tawn ]

noun

, Cycling.

1. a large pack or cluster of bicyclists in a road race, riding closely together to reduce wind resistance and conserve their energy.

peloton

²

[ pel-uh-ton, pel-uh-ton; French plaw-tawn ]

noun

1. an ornamental glass made in Bohemia in the late 19th century, usually having a striated overlay of glass filaments in a different color.

peloton

/ ˈpɛləˌtɒn /

noun

1. cycle racing the main field of riders in a road race

Word History and Origins

Origin of peloton¹

First recorded in 1935–40; from French: literally, “little ball (especially of thread), small body of soldiers”; platoon ( def ), peloton ²

Origin of peloton²

First recorded in 1710–20; from French: literally, “ball, ball of string,” equivalent to pelote “ball” + -on diminutive suffix; pellet, peloton ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of peloton¹

C20: French, literally: pack

Example Sentences

The 26-year-old caught his rivals napping with 100km of the 273.9km route in Zurich remaining, leaving Belgium's Olympic champion Remco Evenepoel and reigning world champion Mathieu van der Poel, of the Netherlands, behind in the peloton.

From BBC

He displayed a steely focus and a precision that laid waste to a pack that spent much of the day tightly bunched together, like a peloton awaiting a sprint finish.

From BBC

The green jersey winner, 24, was one of only six black African riders in the top-level WorldTour peloton of 534 in 2023, the year he made his Tour de France debut.

From BBC

Many believe Girmay's success will spark change in an overwhelmingly white sport - in this year's Tour de France he is the only black rider in the whole peloton of 176 riders.

From BBC

Eritrea's Biniam Girmay recovered from his crash on Tuesday to finish within the peloton as he chases a historic green jersey win.

From BBC