seesaw

[ see-saw ]

/ ˈsiˌsɔ /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR seesaw ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a recreation in which two children alternately ride up and down while seated at opposite ends of a plank balanced at the middle.

a plank or apparatus for this recreation.

an up-and-down or a back-and-forth movement or procedure.

Whist. a crossruff.

adjective

moving up and down, back and forth, or alternately ahead and behind: It was a seesaw game with the lead changing hands many times.

verb (used without object)

to move in a seesaw manner: The boat seesawed in the heavy sea.

to ride or play on a seesaw.

to keep changing one's decision, opinion, or attitude; vacillate.

verb (used with object)

to cause to move in a seesaw manner.

Nearby words

Origin of seesaw

1630–40 as part of a jingle accompanying a children's game; gradational compound based on saw¹

Regional variation note

Although seesaw (def. 2) is the most widely used term in the U.S., teetertotter is also in wide use in the Northern, North Midland, and Western regions. Tilting board and its variants tilt board and tiltering board are New Eng. terms, especially Eastern New Eng., while tinter and its variant teenter are associated with Western New Eng.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for seesaw

Absent a complete ban, or total irrationality, judges should simply step off the seesaw.
Hands Off Those Gun Laws, Judges|Eric Segall|June 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
If the government infringes a protected right, one side of the seesaw goes in the air and the right is lifted and protected.
Hands Off Those Gun Laws, Judges|Eric Segall|June 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
After months of seesaw battles in the Sahara Desert, Libya's rebels are now making their first serious push to Tripoli.
The Battle for Tripoli||August 22, 2011|DAILY BEAST
And as the Candy Rabbit looked through the glass window, he saw the seesaw begin to go up and down.
The Story of a Candy Rabbit|Laura Lee Hope

Ware took the first two games, and Whitman got the following three, and then it was a seesaw until the twelfth.
Harper's Round Table, August 13, 1895|Various
The Hubbard faction was glad of this opportunity, and as there were no objections the seesaw affair of balloting once more began.
History of Linn County Iowa|Luther A. Brewer
We'd be out on the seesaw, but old Miss didn't know what we doin'.
Slave Narratives: A Folk History of Slavery in the United States From Interviews with Former Slaves|Work Projects Administration
"These Lascaris and Grimaldis seem to have played at seesaw for the possession of this coast," said Baker.
Mentone, Cairo, and Corfu|Constance Fenimore Woolson

British Dictionary definitions for seesaw

seesaw

/ (ˈsiːˌsɔː) /

noun

a plank balanced in the middle so that two people seated on the ends can ride up and down by pushing on the ground with their feet

the pastime of riding up and down on a seesaw

an up-and-down or back-and-forth movement
(as modifier)a seesaw movement

verb

(intr) to move up and down or back and forth in such a manner; oscillate

Word Origin for seesaw

C17: reduplication of saw 1, alluding to the movement from side to side, as in sawing

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