rolling

American  

[roh-ling] / ˈroʊ lɪŋ /

noun

1. the action, motion, or sound of anything that rolls.

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adjective

1. moving by revolving or turning over and over.

2. rising and falling in gentle slopes, as land.

   rolling hills.

3. moving in undulating billows, as clouds or waves.

   Jessica felt a peace steal over her as she watched the rolling waves.

4. rocking or swaying from side to side.

   The rolling movement of the train car lulled most of the passengers to sleep.

5. turning or folding over, as a collar.

6. producing a deep, continuous sound.

   rolling thunder.

7. steadily moving onward in a series of stages.

   a rolling program of renovations.

idioms

1. rolling in (something), luxuriating or abounding in (something, especially money).

   As a nonprofit, the Tandy Academy of Music is not exactly rolling in cash.

2. rolling (in the aisles), (of an audience or audience member) convulsed with laughter: Also in the aisles

   Arden had her audience in tears with one song, then rolling in the aisles with her humor.

rolling British  

/ ˈrəʊlɪŋ /

adjective

1. having gentle rising and falling slopes; undulating

   rolling country

2. progressing or spreading by stages or by occurrences in different places in succession, with continued or increasing effectiveness

   three weeks of rolling strikes disrupted schools

3. subject to regular review and updating

   a rolling plan for overseas development

4. deeply resounding; reverberating

   rolling thunder

5. slang extremely rich

6. that may be turned up or down

   a rolling hat brim

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adverb

1. slang swaying or staggering (in the phrase rolling drunk )

Other Word Forms

• rollingly
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of rolling

First recorded in 1400–50; Late Middle English; see roll, -ing ¹, -ing ²

Example Sentences

The network truly came of age with its live rolling coverage from Iraq during the 1990-1991 Gulf War.

From BBC • May 6, 2026

The new agents Anthropic is rolling out Tuesday include a corporate earnings reviewer, a financial statement auditor, and a screener for documents tied to customer due diligence processes.

From Barron's • May 5, 2026

It was a rolling series of associations, first about time and then about travel, time and movement, and how that fit into being a performance artist.

From Los Angeles Times • May 5, 2026

For the rally to keep on rolling, companies will face an increasingly high bar for corporate profit growth to meet, or exceed, analysts’ expectations.

From MarketWatch • May 3, 2026

Suddenly I was tumbling out of the cart, rolling in the straw as it came down.

From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff

Related Words

• hilly
• undulating