electric bike

noun

variants or e-bike

ˈē-ˌbīk 

or electric bicycle

plural electric bikes or e-bikes or electric bicycles

: a bicycle equipped with an electric motor that may be activated in order to assist with or replace pedaling

Just like any bike, electric bikes come with a ton of different technical specs that you may or may not care about.

—Adrienne So

For many years, e-bikes carried the stigma of being vehicles for lazy pedalers and seniors. The bikes draw power from a battery and motor to make pedaling significantly easier. You can also accelerate with the press of a button, transforming cycling from a strenuous exercise into a joy ride.

—Brian X. Chen

Examples of electric bike in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Aligning city definitions with Kansas law, the new rules would define electric bikes without pedals as motorcycles. —Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 5 Mar. 2026

Enjoy the quiet lounge areas and take advantage of the electric bikes available for guests to ride around the city. —Kristin Braswell, Travel + Leisure, 5 Mar. 2026

The Yorba Linda case is part of a wider surge of concern surrounding minors on electric bikes across Southern California. —Cierra Morgan march 4, Los Angeles Times, 4 Mar. 2026

Good electric bikes are expensive. —Thomas Ricker, The Verge, 28 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1881, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for electric bike

• statesmanlike
• unladylike
• alike
• belike
• birdlike
• catlike
• childlike
• christlike
• deathlike
• dislike
• dreamlike
• friedreich