moped
Americannoun
-
mopeds
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of moped
1955–60; < German, ultimately < Swedish ( trampcykel med ) mo ( tor och ) ped ( aler ) pedal cycle with engine and pedals
Explanation
A moped is a two-wheeled vehicle that can be powered by pedals or an engine. You might find it easier to get around the city on your moped than in a car. Although today there are some mopeds that don't have them, the earliest versions always included bicycle pedals. The word itself was coined in 1952 by a Swedish journalist, from trampcykel med motor och pedaler, literally "pedal cycle with motor and pedals." It's relatively easy to get a license to ride a moped, which is less powerful and slower than a motorcycle.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
A ballroom dancer who coddles his pet rats—Fred and Ginger—Declan rides a moped that his colleague, Sara Xiu, describes as “that pitiful hair-dryer on wheels.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
Anything faster is classified as an moped or e-motorcycle, which can require someone to have a motorcycle classification on their license.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
About 10 police vehicles were in attendance, with a Lime bike, cement lorry, two cars and a moped parked within the cordon.
From BBC ● May 23, 2026
Pulling up his laptop, Dallas shows off the art for a single: On a majestic winding Italian road, ian perches pensively on a white moped, in an all-white yacht outfit, barefoot.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2025
“They survived. A couple moped off, and the rest caught up.”
From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen
A Ram truck with a yellow barnacle on its windshield, a handful of mopeds under rain covers, and a lot of empty parking spaces.
From Slate ● Apr. 28, 2025
Here, the music scores an extraordinary montage that includes a lavish ball in 1918, the exploits of a fishing boat and a fleet of mopeds cruising in slow motion.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 27, 2025
He said many people were not educated on the laws surrounding e-bikes and may unknowingly be buying bicycles which are actually classed under UK law as mopeds.
From BBC ● Oct. 28, 2023
Any e-bike which continues to assist the rider after 15.5mph or does not require them to pedal at all are actually treated like petrol powered mopeds under UK law and are not classed as EAPC's.
From BBC ● Oct. 28, 2023
They were sitting outside a curbside cafe on Dong Khai Street, watching the local teenagers circle the square on mopeds.
From "Artemis Fowl" by Eoin Colfer
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
