training wheels

American  

noun

(used with a plural verb)

1. a pair of small wheels attached one on each side of the rear wheel of a bicycle for stability while one is learning to ride.

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Example Sentences

Then look down, around you, at street level, and realize that we might be Manhattan with training wheels.

From Los Angeles Times • May 6, 2026

"You can think of the fetal globin gene as the training wheels on a kid's bike," says Prof. Crossley.

From Science Daily • Jan. 5, 2026

And as the company ramps up, Musk said Tesla could shorten the time it keeps safety drivers in the car to “maybe three months” before taking off the training wheels.

From MarketWatch • Oct. 25, 2025

The spectacle even draws residents along the route to sit and watch, like the Tour de France with a lot more training wheels.

From Slate • Oct. 21, 2024

But invariably the grinning Nines, who in technical violation of the rule had been practicing secretly for weeks, would mount and ride off in perfect balance, training wheels never touching the ground.

From "The Giver" by Lois Lowry