rodeo

American  

[roh-dee-oh, roh-dey-oh] / ˈroʊ diˌoʊ, roʊˈdeɪ oʊ /

noun

plural

rodeos

1. a public exhibition of cowboy skills, as bronco riding and calf roping.

2. a roundup of cattle.

3. Informal. any contest offering prizes in various events.

   a bicycle rodeo for kids under twelve.

4. (initial capital letter, italics) a ballet (1942) choreographed by Agnes de Mille, with musical score by Aaron Copland.

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verb (used without object)

rodeoed, rodeoing

1. to participate or compete in a rodeo or rodeos.

   He's been rodeoing since he was twelve.

rodeo British  

/ ˈrəʊdɪˌəʊ /

noun

1. a display of the skills of cowboys, including bareback riding, steer wrangling, etc

2. the rounding up of cattle for branding, counting, inspection, etc

3. an enclosure for cattle that have been rounded up

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Other Word Forms

• rodeoer noun

Etymology

Origin of rodeo

1825–35; < Spanish: cattle ring, derivative of rodear to go round, itself derivative of rueda wheel < Latin rota

Explanation

A rodeo is a type of entertainment that shows off cowboy skills, such as wrestling steers and roping cattle. In the western United States, a popular type of entertainment is an exhibition known as a rodeo. A rodeo is a place where cowboys demonstrate what they can do for a crowd. Many of these skills are dangerous, like wrestling a steer or riding a bull. Some skills involve lassos and other uses of rope, such as roping (tying up) a goat. These skills are for entertainment at a rodeo, but they're necessary on a cattle ranch.

Example Sentences

While I’m keeping the app option in my back pocket for later, we decided to go analog for our first budgeting rodeo by staring down our raw bank statements.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 31, 2026

It has seen this rodeo before: The smartphone revolution was one such cycle, and AI is another.

From Barron's • Mar. 6, 2026

There are various types of flips that have unique names that don't spell out exactly what the trick contains - including wildcat, tamedog, backflip, frontflip, rodeo, backside rodeo and corked spin.

From BBC • Feb. 16, 2026

In 1977, he directed a documentary about a Nebraska rodeo family, “We’re Not the Jet Set.”

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 16, 2026

After the rodeo, I hopped on a night train out of Calgary.

From "Life Is So Good" by George Dawson

Related Words

• festival