squirrel cage

[ skwur-uhl keyj, skwuhr-uhl ]

/ ˈskwɜr əl ˌkeɪdʒ, ˈskwʌr əl /

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See synonyms for squirrel cage on Thesaurus.com

noun

hamster wheel (defs. 1, 2).

a cage containing a hamster wheel.

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Origin of squirrel cage

First recorded in 1815–25

Words nearby squirrel cage

squireling, squirm, squirmy, squirrel, squirrel away, squirrel cage, squirrel corn, squirrelfish, squirrel monkey, squirrel's-foot fern, squirrel-tail grass

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use squirrel cage in a sentence

But you wonder how even the sane keep from losing their minds when you step into a cell—or rather a cage—at Graterford.
Here’s a Reform Even the Koch Brothers and George Soros Can Agree On|Tina Brown|November 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It is empty, the door swung open—perhaps the bird has already flown, or perhaps the cage awaits its next inhabitant.
Sor Juana: Mexico’s Most Erotic Poet and Its Most Dangerous Nun|Katie Baker|November 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In fact, in 2000 a 9.0-rated Action Comics No.1 owned by Nicolas Cage was stolen from his house.
The Holy Grail of Comic Books Hid in Plain Site at New York Comic Con|Sujay Kumar|October 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In the U.S, Allan Kaprow, an artist pupil of John Cage, came up with the word “Happening” in 1957.
The Life and Art of Radical Provocateur—and Commune Leader—Otto Muehl|Anthony Haden-Guest|September 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST

When I first heard about the sport, I assumed that it was a “no holds barred” cage match where pretty much anything goes.
Jesus Said Knock You Out: In ‘Fight Church’ Christians Beat Thy Neighbor|Bryan Storkel|September 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
"My name is Slicko," answered the lively little girl squirrel, as she jumped about.
Squinty the Comical Pig|Richard Barnum
Squinty looked up in the tree, and there he saw a lovely little girl squirrel, frisking about on the branches.
Squinty the Comical Pig|Richard Barnum
So Hettie put the chicken in a cage, with some wool to cover it, and fed it several times every day, till it came to know her.
The Nursery, July 1873, Vol. XIV. No. 1|Various
The 'cage' was simply an arrangement for 'straiter custody,' though but rarely judged necessary in the case of ladies.
King Robert the Bruce|A. F. Murison
Across the middle of the cage a stout barricade has been erected, and behind the barricade sits the Master, pale but defiant.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Volume 158, April 28, 1920|Various

British Dictionary definitions for squirrel cage

squirrel cage

noun

a cage consisting of a cylindrical framework that is made to rotate by a small animal running inside the framework

a repetitive purposeless task, way of life, etc

Also called: squirrel-cage motor electrical engineering the rotor of an induction motor with a cylindrical winding having copper bars around the periphery parallel to the axis

an electric fan with many long narrow blades arranged in parallel so as to form a cylinder about an axis around which they spin

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

squirrel cage

Origin of squirrel cage

Words nearby squirrel cage

Words related to squirrel cage

How to use squirrel cage in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for squirrel cage