wheelie

[ hwee-lee, wee- ]

noun

1. a small, usually folding, metal frame with wheels for carrying luggage or small packages.
2. a maneuver in which a bicycle, motorcycle, or car has its front wheel or wheels momentarily lifted off the ground.

wheelie

/ ˈwiːlɪ /

noun

1. a manoeuvre on a bicycle or motorbike in which the front wheel is raised off the ground

Word History and Origins

Origin of wheelie¹

First recorded in 1960–65; wheel + -ie

Example Sentences

I’m usually on my dirt bike doing wheelies and nobody bothers me.

From Outside Online

I’m glad we’re doing this exercise, if only because I now have an excuse to pore over Kim Cross’s essay on wheelies again.

From Outside Online

A wheelie is the bicycling equivalent of hanging ten on a surfboard or spinning a basketball on your finger—a skill as profoundly cool as it is functionally irrelevant.

From Outside Online