cartwheel

1 of 2

noun

cart·​wheel ˈkärt-ˌ(h)wēl How to pronounce cartwheel (audio)
1
: a large coin (such as a silver dollar)
2
: a lateral handspring with arms and legs extended

cartwheel

2 of 2

verb

cartwheeled; cartwheeling; cartwheels

intransitive verb

: to move like a turning wheel
specifically : to perform cartwheels
cartwheeler noun

Examples of cartwheel in a Sentence

Noun The children turned cartwheels and somersaults on the grass. Verb She cartwheeled across the floor. The car hit the pole and then cartwheeled across the road.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
Their heavy heads, the size of cartwheels, bowed down and facing towards the sun, from East to West. Literary Hub, 15 Aug. 2025 What began as a lighthearted moment among friends turned into a months-long ordeal for Deborah Cobb of Seattle, when cartwheels on the beach left her unable to see. Alice Gibbs, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 July 2025
Verb
As thousands of fans looked on through binoculars Monday night, the Golden State Valkyries unveiled their new mascot: a bespectacled purple raven named Violet, who cartwheeled her way onto the court and into the hearts of the Valkyries faithful. Andrew Zeng, Mercury News, 13 Aug. 2025 Those four-legged friends may soon have a biped partner: Atlas, the humanoid robots from Boston Dynamics whose breathtaking physical skills—including crawling, cartwheeling, and even breakdance moves—have observers wondering if autoworkers are next in line to be replaced by AI. IEEE Spectrum, 28 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for cartwheel

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1855, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1917, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of cartwheel was in 1855

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Cartwheel.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cartwheel. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.

Kids Definition

cartwheel

noun
cart·​wheel
ˈkärt-ˌhwēl,
-ˌwēl
1
: a large coin (as a silver dollar)
2
: a sideways handspring with arms and legs extended

More from Merriam-Webster on cartwheel

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!