wheel

[ weel, hweel ]

noun

1. a circular frame or disk arranged to revolve on an axis, as on or in vehicles or machinery.
2. any machine, apparatus, instrument, etc., shaped like this or having a circular frame, disk, or revolving drum as an essential feature:

   a potter's wheel; roulette wheel; spinning wheel.

3. steering wheel.
4. Nautical.
   1. a circular frame with an axle connecting to the rudder of a ship, for steering:

      He took the wheel during the storm.

   2. a paddle wheel.
   3. a propeller.
5. Informal. a bicycle.
6. a round object, decoration, etc.:

   a wheel of cheese; a design of red wheels and blue squares.

7. an old instrument of torture in the form of a circular frame on which the victim was stretched until disjointed.
8. a circular firework that revolves rapidly while burning; pinwheel.
9. a rotating instrument that Fortune is represented as turning in order to bring about changes or reverses in human affairs.
10. wheels,
    1. moving, propelling, or animating agencies:

       the wheels of commerce; the wheels of thought.

    2. Slang. a personal means of transportation, especially a car.
11. a cycle, recurring action, or steady progression:

    the wheel of days and nights.

12. a wheeling or circular movement:

    the intricate wheels of the folk dances.

13. (formerly) a movement of troops, ships, etc., drawn up in line, as if turning on a pivot.
14. Informal. someone active and influential, as in business, politics, etc.; an important person:

    a big wheel.

verb (used with object)

1. to cause to turn, rotate, or revolve, as on an axis.
2. to perform (a movement) in a circular or curving direction.
3. to move, roll, or convey on wheels, casters, etc.:

   The servants wheel the tables out.

4. to provide (a vehicle, machine, etc.) with wheels.

verb (used without object)

1. to turn on or as on an axis or about a center; revolve, rotate, or pivot.
2. to move in a circular or curving course:

   pigeons wheeling above.

3. to turn so as to face in a different direction (often followed by about or around ):

   He wheeled about and faced his opponent squarely.

4. to change one's opinion or procedure (often followed by about or around ):

   He wheeled around and argued for the opposition.

5. to roll along on or as on wheels; travel along smoothly:

   The car wheeled along the highway.

6. British Military. to turn:

   Right wheel!

wheel

/ wiːl /

noun

1. a solid disc, or a circular rim joined to a hub by radial or tangential spokes, that is mounted on a shaft about which it can turn, as in vehicles and machines
2. anything like a wheel in shape or function
3. a device consisting of or resembling a wheel or having a wheel as its principal component

   a water wheel

   a steering wheel

4. the wheel
   a medieval torture consisting of a wheel to which the victim was tied and then had his limbs struck and broken by an iron bar
5. short for wheel of fortune potter's wheel
6. the act of turning
7. a pivoting movement of troops, ships, etc
8. a type of firework coiled to make it rotate when let off
9. a set of short rhyming lines, usually four or five in number, forming the concluding part of a stanza Compare bob 2
10. the disc in which the ball is spun in roulette
11. an informal word for bicycle
12. archaic.
    a refrain
13. informal.
    a person of great influence (esp in the phrase big wheel )
14. at the wheel
    1. driving or steering a vehicle or vessel
    2. in charge

verb

1. whenintr sometimes foll by about or round to turn or cause to turn on or as if on an axis
2. to move or cause to move on or as if on wheels; roll
3. tr to perform with or in a circular movement
4. tr to provide with a wheel or wheels
5. introften foll byabout to change one's mind or opinion
6. wheel and deal informal.
   to be a free agent, esp to advance one's own interests

Derived Forms

• ˈwheel-less, adjective

Other Words From

• wheel·less adjective
• un·der·wheel noun
• un·wheel verb (used with object)

Word History and Origins

Origin of wheel¹

First recorded before 900; (for the noun) Middle English whel(e), Old English hwēol, hweohl; cognate with Dutch wiel, Old Norse hjōl; akin to Greek kýklos, Persian charkh, Sanskrit cakra-; verb derivative of the noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of wheel¹

Old English hweol, hweowol; related to Old Norse hvēl, Greek kuklos, Middle Low German wēl, Dutch wiel

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. at the wheel,
   1. at the helm of a ship, the steering wheel of a motor vehicle, etc.
   2. in command or control:

      Her ambition is to be at the wheel of a large corporation by the age of 40.

2. spin one's wheels, Informal. to expend or waste effort to no avail:

   He spun his wheels on that project for two years.

3. wheel and deal, Informal. to operate dynamically for one's own profit or benefit.
4. wheels within wheels, an involved interaction of motives or agencies operating to produce the final result:

   Government agencies are a study of wheels within wheels.

5. hell on wheels. hell ( def 19 ).

More idioms and phrases containing wheel

• asleep at the switch (wheel)
• at the wheel
• big cheese (wheel)
• cog in the wheel
• fifth wheel
• grease (oil) the wheels
• hell on wheels
• put one's shoulder to the wheel
• reinvent the wheel
• set (wheels) in motion
• spin one's wheels
• squeaky wheel gets the grease

Example Sentences

He and his team aren't re-inventing the wheel, but rolling it into a new part of the world as a force for planetary good.

From Salon

In better days, the Ferris wheel, pirate ship and outdoor trampoline — advertised as the biggest in Asia — would draw thousands of children a day.

From Los Angeles Times

Zoox vehicles were custom built for self-driving and feature no traditional manual controls — not even a steering wheel.

From Los Angeles Times

"As he machine gunned across it went through my bicycle wheel and missed me entirely."

From BBC

He signed autographs and took selfies with fans before the race and received a 'wheel of honour' - other riders held their bikes up on one wheel and spun the other - on the start line of the race, made up of 25 laps of a 2.3km course.

From BBC

Related Words

• disk
• drum
• roller