wheel

American  

[hweel, weel] / ʰwil, wil /

noun

• wheels
  plural

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.

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verb (used with object)

• wheels,
  present (3rd person singular)
• wheeled,
  past participle,  past
• wheeling
  present participle

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)

• wheels,
  present (3rd person singular)
• wheeled,
  past participle,  past
• wheeling
  present participle

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 oraround ).

   He wheeled about and faced his opponent squarely.

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

   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!

idioms

1. 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.

2. 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.

3. hell on wheels. hell.

4. spin one's wheels, to expend or waste effort to no avail.

   He spun his wheels on that project for two years.

5. wheel and deal, to operate dynamically for one's own profit or benefit.

wheel British  

/ 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 steering wheel

   a water wheel

4. 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. 1. driving or steering a vehicle or vessel

    2. in charge

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verb

1. 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. to change one's mind or opinion

6. informal to be a free agent, esp to advance one's own interests

wheel More Idioms  

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

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• underwheel
  noun
• unwheel
  verb (used with object)
• wheel-less
  adjective
• wheelless
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• wheels
  plural

Participles

• wheeling
  present
• wheeled
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• wheel
  simple
• wheels
  simple
• have wheeled
  perfect
• has wheeled
  perfect
• am wheeling
  progressive
• are wheeling
  progressive
• is wheeling
  progressive
• have been wheeling
  perfect progressive
• has been wheeling
  perfect progressive

Past

• wheeled
  simple
• had wheeled
  perfect
• was wheeling
  progressive
• were wheeling
  progressive
• had been wheeling
  perfect progressive

Future

• will wheel
  simple
• will have wheeled
  perfect
• will be wheeling
  progressive
• will have been wheeling
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of wheel

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

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

wheel wheels wheeled wheeling

All book adaptations, whether from novels or memoirs, could stand to embellish the facts here and there, or go ahead and reinvent the wheel when possible.

From Salon ● Aug. 12, 2026

Tail Town’s main room is filled with stacked cat beds, an exercise wheel, two huge rectangular storage benches sprinkled with doughnut-shaped beds, and cat-themed art on the walls.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026

One wheel of the plane sat near the debris, completely detached from the aircraft.

From Barron's ● Aug. 2, 2026

"The wheel was kicked off so they weren't really attempting to take the bike," she said.

From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026

“This wheel is a hundred years old. It always seems funny to watch TV or listen to a podcast while working on an antique.”

From "Bye Forever, I Guess" by Jodi Meadows

Civilians and soldiers, sat behind the wheels of the vehicles, lined up, waiting for the pumps to reopen.

From Barron's ● Aug. 12, 2026

However, the wheels came off in Mourinho's third season in the Spanish capital and he was dismissed at the end of 2012-13 with Real finishing 15 points behind rivals Barcelona.

From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2026

Nearly 40,000 participated, and all 360,000 damaged wheels were sold.

From Salon ● Aug. 6, 2026

Energy was provided by muscle power, windmills and water wheels.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 2, 2026

The other wheels look damaged, but it is difficult to assess just how much.

From "A Rover's Story" by Jasmine Warga

TMZ published photos of someone who appears to be Graham being wheeled outside of his home and into an ambulance.

From Salon ● Jul. 13, 2026

As he was wheeled away to a waiting ambulance, Gil wore an oxygen mask and neck brace, and his face showed bruising.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 5, 2026

On the Afghan side of the Torkham border crossing, children and adults wheeled their luggage or carried belongings atop their heads, as they moved from desk to desk to log their arrival.

From Barron's ● Jul. 3, 2026

The company offers a range of wheeled, wheel-legged, and humanoid-like robots used in sectors including shared mobility, manufacturing and property services.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 22, 2026

We entered the same room the gurney had been wheeled from.

From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros

I’m wheeling my bike off it with balletic ease, definitely not annoying my fellow commuters as I lug it down the stairs.

From Salon ● Aug. 4, 2026

When the convention was first announced, it sounded like it might be a thrilling opportunity to see real wheeling and dealing on a convention floor from which a nominee would eventually emerge.

From Slate ● Jul. 25, 2026

Investment banking - the wheeling and dealing side of the financial industry, which looks after mergers, acquisitions and stock market launches - is also notorious for long hours.

From BBC ● Feb. 8, 2026

While the crossings remain closed, life has regained a semblance of normality, with bakers kneading bread, fruit and vegetable sellers wheeling out their carts, and customers frequenting shops.

From Barron's ● Oct. 20, 2025

For a moment he imagined the Tripps wheeling out of the woods and flying around them.

From "Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy" by Gary D. Schmidt

Related Words

• pivot
• spin
• trundle
• twirl
• whirl