a small gravity railroad, especially in an amusement park, having a train with open cars that moves along a high, sharply winding trestle built with steep inclines that produce sudden, speedy plunges for thrill-seeking passengers.
a car or train of cars for such a railroad.
any phenomenon, period, or experience of persistent or violent ups and downs, as one fluctuating between prosperity and recession or elation and despair.
to go up and down like a roller coaster; rise and fall.
a narrow road roller-coastering around the mountain; a light boat roller-coastering over the waves.
to experience a period of prosperity, happiness, security, or the like, followed by a contrasting period of economic depression, despair, or the like.
The economy was roller-coastering throughout most of the decade.
of, relating to, or characteristic of a roller coaster.
resembling the progress of a ride on a roller coaster in sudden extreme changeableness.
First recorded in 1885–90
First recorded in 1960–65
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The emotional roller coaster his comments and the subsequent backlash took us on are emblematic of a larger hesitancy and resistance to change.
From Slate • Jun. 15, 2026
But while both are promising young actors, they do not succeed in bringing sufficient feeling to the jolting roller coaster of their characters’ fates.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026
In recent years, the IRS has been on a roller coaster.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 5, 2026
A roller coaster that when it was created in 2000 “demanded an all-new category just to classify its one of a kind nature,” giving rise to the “giga-coaster.”
From Los Angeles Times • May 29, 2026
Like last night, she told me about the time she peed her pants waiting in line for a roller coaster.
From "The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl" by Stacy McAnulty
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.
