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Ferris wheel

[fer-is]
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noun
  1. an amusement ride consisting of a large upright wheel rotating on a fixed stand and having seats around its rim suspended freely so that they remain right side up as they revolve.
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Origin of Ferris wheel

1890–95; named after G. W. G. Ferris (died 1896), American engineer
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for ferris wheel

Historical Examples

  • All he saw was what appeared to be a sort of ferris-wheel, except that it was revolving in a horizontal plane.

    Minor Detail

    John Michael Sharkey

  • After that we came to the place where Daredevil Dennell used to go up in a balloon and just beyond there is the ferris-wheel.

    Roy Blakeley's Bee-line Hike

    Percy Keese Fitzhugh

British Dictionary definitions for ferris wheel

Ferris wheel

noun
  1. a fairground wheel having seats freely suspended from its rim; the seats remain horizontal throughout its rotation
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Word Origin

C19: named after G.W.G. Ferris (1859–96), American engineer
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for ferris wheel

Ferris wheel

n.

1893, American English, from U.S. engineer George W.G. Ferris (1859-1896), who designed it for the World's Columbian Exposition, held in Chicago, 1893. It was 250 feet tall and meant to rival the Eiffel Tower, from the 1889 Paris Exposition.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper