Definition

Noun: A small human-powered vehicle with three wheels, typically propelled by foot pedals. It is often used by young children learning to ride, but also by adults for recreation, utility, or as an adaptive mobility device.

Usage and Examples

• As a common noun: Refers to the vehicle itself.
  • The child received a red tricycle for her third birthday.
  • He uses a tricycle to deliver newspapers in his neighborhood.
• With verbs of action: Used with verbs like , , , or .
  • She learned to ride a tricycle before she learned to ride a bicycle.
  • The vendor pedals his ice cream tricycle through the park.

Advanced Usage and Nuances

• Utility and Adult Use: While often associated with children, tricycles are also used by adults for cargo transport (cargo trikes), street vending, or as stable alternatives to bicycles.
  • The postal worker uses a heavy-duty tricycle for her mail route.
• Adaptive Mobility: Some tricycles are designed for individuals with balance or mobility challenges, providing stable, seated cycling.
  • After his injury, he found freedom on a recumbent tricycle.

Variants and Related Words

• Trike (noun): A common informal shortening of "tricycle."
  • The toddler zoomed around on his little trike.
• Tricyclic (adjective): A technical term, primarily in chemistry, meaning having three rings in a molecular structure. This is a distinct term and not a variant of the vehicle.
• Velomobile: An enclosed, often aerodynamic, human-powered vehicle, frequently with three wheels.

Synonyms and Near-Synonyms

• Three-wheeler: A more general term that can also refer to certain motor vehicles.
• Cycle rickshaw: A specific type of passenger tricycle used for transport.
• Pedal car: A broader term for human-powered multi-wheeled vehicles, which may include some tricycle designs.

Related Phrases and Compounds

• Tricycle landing gear (noun phrase): An aircraft configuration with two main wheels and a third wheel (nose or tail wheel). This is a specialized technical term unrelated to the pedal-powered vehicle but shares the core concept of a three-point wheel arrangement.
• To ride a tricycle (verb phrase): The standard phrase for using the vehicle.

Noun

1. a vehicle with three wheels that is moved by foot pedals