bumper car

American  

noun

bumper cars plural

1. (in an amusement park) a small, carlike electric vehicle with an encircling rubber bumper that one maneuvers around an enclosed arena while purposely bumping other vehicles.

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bumper car British  

noun

1. Also called: Dodgem.  a low-powered electrically propelled vehicle driven and bumped against similar cars in a special rink at a funfair

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• bumper cars
  plural

Etymology

Origin of bumper car

First recorded in 1945–50

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bumper car

Vences also plays soccer, so those skills certainly can help in the video game when trying to hit a soccer ball into the net with a bumper car.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 24, 2025

You remember that vacation experience — salt-air beachside walks and kite-flying, fresh-made fudge, mom ‘n’ pop shops, bumper car slams and slow sunsets caught from the sand.

From Seattle Times ● Apr. 13, 2022

In an interview in early July, Mr. Tolia had the somewhat rattled demeanor of a man who had been on a bumper car ride for three days.

From New York Times ● Aug. 5, 2021

The former amusement park's bumper car pavilion has taken on new life as the setting for weekly outdoor dances — especially important while the historic Spanish Ballroom is closed.

From Washington Post ● Jul. 23, 2021

He ran to the wall of the bumper car arena and vaulted over it.

From "Trouble at the Arcade (The Hardy Boys: Secret Files, #1)" by Franklin W. Dixon