cartwheel

1 of 2

noun

cart·​wheel ˈkärt-ˌ(h)wēl 

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

Noun

Through the same processes, Atlas was taught to crawl, do cartwheels. —Marc Lieberman, CBS News, 5 Jan. 2026

As Europop blasts from the speakers, the dancer performs cartwheels and backflips in the general vicinity of the robot, which at one point drops to the floor to crank out some push-ups. —James Vincent, Harpers Magazine, 30 Dec. 2025

Verb

Now, Atlas can cartwheel, dance, run with human-like fluidity, twist its arms, head and torso 360 degrees, and pick itself up off of the floor using only its feet. —Will Croxton, CBS News, 5 Jan. 2026

Sarah Snook cartwheeled through 26 roles — from the beautiful and doomed protagonist to his oily, eloquent corruptor, Lord Henry, to the tragically self-sabotaging actress Sibyl Vane — without, seemingly, losing her breath or putting a single curl on Dorian’s golden head out of place. —Sara Holdren, Vulture, 4 Dec. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1855, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1917, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing cartwheel

• cartwheel flower

Rhymes for cartwheel

• abele
• alkyl
• anneal
• appeal
• conceal
• congeal
• coquille
• corneal
• cornmeal
• flywheel
• foveal
• genteel

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