bike

¹ American  

[bahyk] / baɪk /

noun

1. Informal.

   1. a bicycle.

   2. a motorbike.

   3. a motorcycle.

2. Harness Racing. a sulky with tires like those of a bicycle.

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verb (used without object)

biked, biking

1. to ride a bike.

   I bike to work.

idioms

1. get off one's bike, to lose control of oneself or become angry.

bike ² American  

[bahyk] / baɪk /

noun

Scot. and North England.

1. a colony, nest, or swarm of wild bees, wasps, or hornets.

2. a teeming crowd; swarm of people.

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bike ¹ British  

/ baɪk /

noun

1. informal short for bicycle motorcycle

2. slang away you go

3. slang to lose one's self-control

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noun

1. slang a promiscuous woman

   the town bike

bike ² British  

/ baɪk, bəɪk /

noun

1. a wasps' or bees' nest

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verb

1. to swarm

Etymology

Origin of bike¹

1880–85, alteration of bicycle

Origin of bike²

1250–1300; Middle English, equivalent to *bi bee (< Old Norse bȳ bee ¹ ) + *yeke, Old English gēoc help, safety

Example Sentences

The sixth-year senior sang and danced his way through warm-ups, before opening the game on a stationary bike in the corner of the arena.

From Los Angeles Times

It showed a man on a bike in a balaclava, in front of shop signs written in Arabic.

From BBC

He had been travelling with a friend as part of his birthday celebrations when on 1 February he was knocked from his bike while overtaking a car.

From BBC

“My parents didn’t show me how to ride a bike,” he said.

From Literature

“It’s my neighbor. It’s my teacher. It’s a place where I walk and bike.”

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• pedal