sledge

¹ American  

[slej] / slɛdʒ /

noun

1. a vehicle of various forms, mounted on runners and often drawn by draft animals, used for traveling or for conveying loads over snow, ice, rough ground, etc.

2. a sled.

3. British. a sleigh.

---

verb (used with or without object)

sledges, present (3rd person singular) sledged, past participle, past sledging present participle

1. to convey or travel by sledge.

verb (used without object)

sledges, present (3rd person singular) sledged, past participle, past sledging present participle

1. British. to sleigh.

sledge ² American  

[slej] / slɛdʒ /

noun

sledged, sledging

1. sledgehammer.

---

sledge ¹ British  

/ slɛd, slɛdʒ /

noun

1. Also called: sleigh.  a vehicle mounted on runners, drawn by horses or dogs, for transporting people or goods, esp over snow

2. a light wooden frame used, esp by children, for sliding over snow; toboggan

3. a farm vehicle mounted on runners, for use on rough or muddy ground

---

verb

1. to convey, travel, or go by sledge

sledge ² British  

/ slɛdʒ /

verb

1. (tr) to bait (an opponent, esp a batsman in cricket) in order to upset his concentration

---

noun

1. an insult aimed at another player during a game of cricket

sledge ³ British  

/ slɛdʒ /

noun

1. short for sledgehammer

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• sledger
  noun

Inflected Forms

Participles

• sledging
  present
• sledged
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• sledge
  simple
• sledges
  simple
• have sledged
  perfect
• has sledged
  perfect
• am sledging
  progressive
• are sledging
  progressive
• is sledging
  progressive
• have been sledging
  perfect progressive
• has been sledging
  perfect progressive

Past

• sledged
  simple
• had sledged
  perfect
• was sledging
  progressive
• were sledging
  progressive
• had been sledging
  perfect progressive

Future

• will sledge
  simple
• will have sledged
  perfect
• will be sledging
  progressive
• will have been sledging
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of sledge¹

1595–1605; < dialectal Dutch sleeds, derivative of slede sled; cf. sleigh

Origin of sledge²

before 1000; Middle English slegge, Old English slecg; cognate with Dutch slegge, Old Norse sleggja; akin to slay

Example Sentences

He later documented his journeys through India on elephant-back and across Siberia by sledge.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 7, 2025

Using sledge hammers, they collected hundreds of kilograms of rock and took them back to labs for analysis.

From BBC • Oct. 21, 2024

At sea level, the oxygen molecules are driven into the lungs and into the blood with the force of a sledge hammer.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 2, 2023

The court heard that the pair had taken the dogs to Ostler Plantation at around 23:00 to pull a racing sledge.

From BBC • Jun. 1, 2023

Lord Astiers sledge tracks were clear, however, and Iorek followed them swiftly, loping through the snow and kicking it high behind them as he ran.

From "The Golden Compass" by Philip Pullman

Related Words

• bobsled
• luge