cart-wheel
Definition
- Noun:
- A wheel of a cart: A large, sturdy wheel attached to a cart, typically used for transportation of goods.
- A gymnastic move: A sideways handspring where the body rotates with arms and legs extended, resembling the spokes of a wheel.
Usage Examples
Noun (wheel):
- The old farmer replaced the broken cart-wheel before the harvest. (The wheel of the cart was repaired for hauling crops.)
Noun (gymnastic move):
- The child performed a perfect cart-wheel across the lawn. (A sideways rotating movement with hands and feet touching the ground in sequence.)
Advanced Usage
"to turn a cart-wheel": to perform the gymnastic move.
- She turned a cart-wheel to impress her friends at the park. (She executed a sideways handspring.)
"to throw a cart-wheel": an older or informal variant meaning the same as "turn a cart-wheel."
- The acrobat threw a cart-wheel with remarkable grace. (The performer executed the move skillfully.)
Variants and Related Words
Cartwheel (n): a single word spelling variant of "cart-wheel," commonly used in modern English.
- He practiced his cartwheel until he could do it without stumbling. (The gymnastic move.)
Cartwheeling (adj/verb): describing the action of performing cartwheels.
- The cartwheeling children filled the playground with laughter. (Children doing cartwheels.)
Synonyms
- Handspring: a gymnastic move similar to a cartwheel but performed forward or backward.
- Side somersault: a sideways roll, though less common as a direct synonym.
Related Idioms
- "to go cart-wheels": an informal phrase meaning to perform a series of cartwheels.
- The cheerleader went cart-wheels across the field. (She performed multiple cartwheels in succession.)
Additional Meaning (Informal)
- A large coin: In British slang, "cart-wheel" can refer to a large silver coin, such as a crown or a dollar.
- He paid for the drink with a cart-wheel, much to the bartender's surprise. (A large coin, like an old silver dollar.)