yo-yo
Americannoun
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yo-yos
plural
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a spoollike toy consisting of two thick wooden, plastic, or metal disks connected by a dowel pin in the center to which a string is attached, one end being looped around the player's finger so that the toy can be spun out and reeled in by wrist motion.
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something that fluctuates or moves up and down, especially suddenly or repeatedly.
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Slang. a stupid, foolish, or incompetent person.
adjective
verb (used without object)
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yo-yos,
present (3rd person singular)
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yo-yoed,
past participle, past
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yo-yoing
present participle
verb (used with object)
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yo-yos,
present (3rd person singular)
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yo-yoed,
past participle, past
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yo-yoing
present participle
noun
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a toy consisting of a spool attached to a string, the end of which is held while it is repeatedly spun out and reeled in
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slang a stupid person, esp one who is easily manipulated
verb
adjective
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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yo-yosimple
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yo-yossimple
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have yo-yoedperfect
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has yo-yoedperfect
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am yo-yoingprogressive
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are yo-yoingprogressive
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is yo-yoingprogressive
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have been yo-yoingperfect progressive
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has been yo-yoingperfect progressive
Past
-
yo-yoedsimple
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had yo-yoedperfect
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was yo-yoingprogressive
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were yo-yoingprogressive
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had been yo-yoingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of yo-yo
First recorded in 1915–20; of undetermined origin; possibly from Ilocano yóyo or a related language as the name of a Philippine toy
Explanation
A yo-yo is a toy that's made of a string wound around two connected discs. The trick of a yo-yo is to drop the discs to the end of the string and flick them back up into your hand. When you learn to use a yo-yo, you can do tricks that involve the spinning discs and the string's tension. A yo-yo expert can "walk the dog," where the yo-yo rolls along the floor like a dog on a leash, or go "around the world," making a wide circle in the air with the yo-yo before snapping it back up the string to her hand. The word yo-yo appeared around 1915, possibly from a language of the Philippines.
Vocabulary lists containing yo-yo
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.
See Examples For:
Repeated weight loss followed by weight regain, often called "yo-yo dieting" or weight cycling, has long been viewed as unhealthy and potentially even worse than staying overweight.
From Science Daily ● May 17, 2026
They use a "flywheel exercise device," similar to a yo-yo, that can allow for aerobics like rowing as well as provide resistance to perform moves like weighted squats and deadlifts.
From Barron's ● Apr. 4, 2026
Wild swings in individual stocks and assets still managed to bleed into the major U.S. equity indexes, with all three snapping back and forth like a yo-yo.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 7, 2026
Attacks on Federal Reserve independence, yo-yo tariffs and unpredictable foreign policy had already pushed the greenback close to a multiyear low.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 28, 2026
He found the cartridges for his Nintendo DS, his yo-yo, and the zit cream and crammed them into his pockets.
From "Stormbreaker" by Anthony Horowitz
Duncan Toys has been producing yo-yos, flying discs and model gliders in China, and Washington's escalating tariffs with Beijing last year similarly forced him to pause imports.
From Barron's ● Feb. 20, 2026
One of the sweetest tributes to Smothers can be found on the YoYoExpert website, where fans reminisce about the brothers’ “Just say YO: The Yo-Yo Man Instructional Video” and post photographs of their Smothers-branded yo-yos.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 29, 2023
But the business slowly expanded and by 1986 Christian and Sylviane's company, CSP Diffusion, opened its first factory in our hometown, Oyonnax, making various plastic items such as hairbands, combs and even yo-yos.
From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2022
These missives spin the administration, the news media, the country and the world — like yo-yos on a string.
From Washington Post ● Sep. 6, 2018
He yo-yos between the kitchen and his bedroom, and that's about it.
From "How It Went Down" by Kekla Magoon
It would be their second relegation in as many seasons and third in four years, having previously yo-yoed between the Premier League and Championship.
From BBC ● Apr. 20, 2026
Since then, the impressive abode has bounced on and off the market multiple times, as the Baldwins have yo-yoed on their decision to sell it.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 19, 2026
Cryptocurrencies have yo-yoed this week but were down again Friday.
From Barron's ● Jan. 23, 2026
It fell from 4.61% just before the reports’ release to 4.57% and then yo-yoed before easing back to 4.55%.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 5, 2023
Gregor and Boots shot up fifty feet in the air and yo-yoed up and down like they were on a big rubber band.
From "Gregor the Overlander" by Suzanne Collins
But worries eased and stock indexes recovered—with investors appearing more than happy to take the latest yo-yoing update on trade in stride, analysts said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2025
Now Brentford, Bournemouth and Brighton are the shining examples of clubs who have bucked the trend of yo-yoing between the Premier League and Championship, with recruitment models the envy of many clubs.
From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2025
CONGRESS, Ariz. — The hands are in constant motion, yo-yoing the wheel left, right, left in small corrections and full turns.
From Washington Times ● Dec. 14, 2023
Sunday was more or less a rerun of every Heinicke performance, yo-yoing between massive miscues and inexplicable brilliance, which means coaches will have to look at the margins for improvement.
From Washington Post ● Dec. 19, 2022
And amidst the yo-yoing of the whole four, the chaise stopped.
From The Pickwick Papers by Charles Dickens
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.
