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• roller coaster
  roller coaster

  noun

  a small gravity railroad, especially in an amusement park, having a train with open cars that moves along a high, sharply winding trestle built with steep inclines that produce sudden, speedy plunges for thrill-seeking passengers.
• roller-coaster
  roller-coaster

  verb (used without object)

  to go up and down like a roller coaster; rise and fall.

roller coaster

¹ American  

noun

1. a small gravity railroad, especially in an amusement park, having a train with open cars that moves along a high, sharply winding trestle built with steep inclines that produce sudden, speedy plunges for thrill-seeking passengers.

2. a car or train of cars for such a railroad.

3. any phenomenon, period, or experience of persistent or violent ups and downs, as one fluctuating between prosperity and recession or elation and despair.

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roller-coaster ² American  

[roh-ler-koh-ster, roh-li-] / ˈroʊ lərˌkoʊ stər, ˈroʊ lɪ- /

verb (used without object)

1. to go up and down like a roller coaster; rise and fall.

   a narrow road roller-coastering around the mountain; a light boat roller-coastering over the waves.

2. to experience a period of prosperity, happiness, security, or the like, followed by a contrasting period of economic depression, despair, or the like.

   The economy was roller-coastering throughout most of the decade.

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adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of a roller coaster.

2. resembling the progress of a ride on a roller coaster in sudden extreme changeableness.

roller coaster British  

noun

1. another term for big dipper

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Etymology

Origin of roller coaster¹

First recorded in 1885–90

Origin of roller-coaster²

First recorded in 1960–65

Example Sentences

Chip stocks have led the gains in Asia after a roller coaster week amid geopolitical volatility concerns over inflation and worries over a bubble in AI stocks.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026

In recent years, the IRS has been on a roller coaster.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 5, 2026

“This season was an emotional roller coaster but I know I can get 7-3.”

From Los Angeles Times • May 31, 2026

For Catriona, the daily roller coaster of coping with the death of her husband has been worsened by the legal limbo she now finds herself in.

From BBC • May 20, 2026

And Bradford’s spirits fell again like the second drop of a roller coaster.

From "Scythe" by Neal Shusterman