carousel

noun

car·​ou·​sel ˌker-ə-ˈsel 

ˌka-rə-

also

-ˈzel  ˈker-ə-ˌsel 

ˈka-rə-

variants or less commonly carrousel

1

: a tournament or exhibition in which horsemen execute evolutions

2

a

: merry-go-round

b

: a circular conveyor

the luggage carousel at the airport

c

: a revolving case or tray used for storage or display

Examples of carousel in a Sentence

He loves to ride on the carousel at the park.

the luggage carousel at the airport

a CD player with a six-disk carousel

Recent Examples on the Web

Hosk initially broke the news yesterday with an Instagram carousel that has since been taken down. —Christina Perrier, InStyle, 10 Apr. 2026

Even the credit logo animation is a tribute to the Glen Echo carousel. —Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 10 Apr. 2026

In the next photo shared in Fleetwood's March 28 carousel, the happy couple kiss in an enchanting tropical locale. —Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Apr. 2026

Also, the museum has an Eco-Adventure Carousel that includes sculptures of animals native to the surrounding mountains of the museum (additional fee for rides on the carousel). —Holly Andres, Daily News, 9 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

French carrousel, from Italian carosello

First Known Use

1650, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for carousel

• bagatelle
• caravel
• carrousel
• citadel
• clientele
• commonweal
• decibel
• demoiselle
• fontanelle
• infidel
• isabel
• machiavel

Kids Definition

carousel

noun

car·​ou·​sel

variants also carrousel

ˌkar-ə-ˈsel

also -ˈzel;

ˈkar-ə-ˌsel

also -ˌzel

: merry-go-round sense 1