cartwheel
cartwheel Lexical Profile
cartwheel Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A sideways acrobatic movement in which a person places their hands on the floor one after the other while swinging their legs up and over the body in a circular motion, landing on their feet.
"The young gymnast executed a flawless cartwheel across the mat during her floor routine."
A large, spoked wheel of a cart or wagon.
"An antique wooden cartwheel leaned against the stone wall of the old barn."
American A large silver coin, especially a United States silver dollar (informal).
"The collector proudly displayed a nineteenth-century silver cartwheel in a protective glass case."
• verb
To perform an acrobatic cartwheel by propelling oneself sideways onto the hands and over onto the feet.
"The delighted children cartwheeled across the grassy lawn all afternoon."
To tumble, spin, or revolve rapidly end over end in an uncontrolled manner.
"The race car clipped the barrier and cartwheeled into the gravel trap."
Word Origin & Etymology
Formed in Middle English as a compound of 'cart' and 'wheel'. The gymnastic sense emerged in the mid-19th century, comparing the outstretched arms and legs of a person rotating sideways to the revolving spokes of a large wagon wheel.