motorcycle
Americannoun
-
motorcycles
plural
verb (used without object)
noun
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of motorcycle
Explanation
A motorcycle is a vehicle with two wheels, an engine, and no pedals. Don't forget to wear a helmet when you jump on your motorcycle! Like a bicycle, a motorcycle has two wheels, but while you power your bike by pedaling, a motorcycle's motor takes care of that. All you have to do is keep it full of gasoline. Motorcycles don't burn as much fuel as most cars, so they are a major form of transportation in many cities. Unfortunately, they're also much more dangerous. When motorcycles were invented in the 19th century, they were also sometimes called motocycles.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Suddenly, a motorcycle carrying two helmeted riders pulls up behind the three and Gastelum — wearing a wide-brimmed, western-style hat — turns to the vehicle.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
Operating profit for its motorcycle business increased thanks to higher sales in India and Brazil.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
For the local bikers offering videos for tourists, Chongqing's motorcycle prowess is a business opportunity.
From Barron's ● Aug. 2, 2026
Most likely to protect his $6 million contract that prohibited high-risk activities such as motorcycle riding.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026
Tank drops by on his motorcycle, and he’s the one person I get to introduce to Babs.
From "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy
Chongqing has been an industry hub since 1979, when state-owned military equipment manufacturer Jialing began producing civilian motorcycles in the city.
From Barron's ● Aug. 2, 2026
"It's pushing young people to get in touch with motorcycles," he said.
From Barron's ● Aug. 2, 2026
“When I was 16 years old I was racing motorcycles and driving my great-grandparents’ old Plymouth Volare,” Kent said during his induction speech.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 26, 2026
Harley-Davidson HOG -2.92%decrease; down pointing triangle said it expects to sell more motorcycles this year than it previously expected to, after reporting strong North American sales in the second quarter.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
Over the first hill, they saw an amazing sight: Abandoned motorcycles, trucks, and even guns littered the road, as though the Germans had dropped everything and started running.
From "Surviving Hitler: A Boy in the Nazi Death Camps" by Andrea Warren
She has traveled and lived around the world, crisscrossed South America and Indonesia on her own, motorcycled through Europe and Turkey.
From New York Times ● May 28, 2019
He studied art at a Christian college and motorcycled through Europe in his early 20s to, he said, “sleep in fields and eat yogurt.”
From New York Times ● Mar. 31, 2017
In 1908 he motorcycled from John O'Groats to Land's End.
From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2016
The soldier motorcycled in to see the artist.
From Time Magazine Archive
At ten forty-five, the paraders were halted for some reason, and the General's runners motorcycled down along the line of march and told the bandmasters to keep on playing the liveliest of tunes.
From The Five Arrows by Chase, Allan
While many Chinese cities have restricted motorcycling, Chongqing has embraced it and become a biker's paradise.
From Barron's ● Aug. 2, 2026
Starrs, a motorcycling novice, is emphasizing “joy and swagger.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 5, 2026
James Hewing, museum director, said: "Dave was a beloved figure in both motorcycling and entertainment."
From BBC ● Jan. 31, 2025
I loved it as a whole aesthetic, but I wanted to remove it from this motorcycling boy world.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 12, 2024
"I've seen a red deer too," he said, "when I was motorcycling up to Ross this summer."
From The Judge by West, Rebecca
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.
