sled
Americannoun
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a small vehicle consisting of a platform mounted on runners for use in traveling over snow or ice.
-
a sledge.
verb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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sledsimple
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sledssimple
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have sleddedperfect
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has sleddedperfect
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am sleddingprogressive
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are sleddingprogressive
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is sleddingprogressive
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have been sleddingperfect progressive
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has been sleddingperfect progressive
Past
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sleddedsimple
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had sleddedperfect
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was sleddingprogressive
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were sleddingprogressive
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had been sleddingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of sled
1350–1400; Middle English sledde < Middle Dutch; akin to German Schlitten sled, sleigh; cf. slide
Explanation
If you want to slide down a snowy hill, hop on a sled! A sled can be simple and plastic, or it can be more complicated, with wood and metal runners, like the kind that huskies pull across the tundra. Mush! Sleds sit on runners made to glide over an icy or snowy surface. Large sleds can seat several riders and are pulled by one or more horses, while dog sleds pull one or two people and are usually pulled by several dogs. The sled you get out of the garage in the winter is made of plastic, wood, or metal, and it's meant to slide fast downhill. In the U.K., the word for a sled is sledge.
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.
The actor added that he imagined turning the fictional home into a “movie fun house” where people could sled down the stairs just like Kevin does in the movie.
From MarketWatch • Mar. 2, 2026
Lauryn Williams won a gold medal on the track in the 2012 London Games and a silver on the back of Taylor’s sled two years later in Sochi.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 19, 2026
“I have to sit still and count the curves until we reach the finish line, when I have to pull the brakes. I’m responsible that the sled won’t crash into something.”
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 16, 2026
But he did not necessarily expect to be pushing a sled at another Winter Olympics.
From BBC • Feb. 14, 2026
I sink down on my knees next to the sled in a kind of surrender, and when I look up, my friend is there.
From "Woodsong" by Gary Paulsen
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.
