treadmill
noun
tread·mill
ˈtred-ˌmil 
1
a
: a device having an endless belt on which an individual walks or runs in place for exercise or physiological testing
b
: a mill worked by an animal treading an endless belt
c
: a mill worked by persons treading on steps on the periphery of a wide wheel having a horizontal axis and used formerly in prison punishment
2
: a wearisome or monotonous routine resembling continued activity on a treadmill
the office treadmill
Examples of treadmill in a Sentence
the treadmill of exhausting family schedules
the treadmill of the morning commute to work
Recent Examples on the Web
Premium discretionary products like Peloton’s bikes and treadmills contend with other consumer priorities, and tighter budgets may further dampen hardware demand.
—
Trefis Team, Forbes.com, 23 Jan. 2026
The machine is basically an eight-meter tunnel of treadmills covered in plastic leaves—about 8,000 of them all stapled on by hand, explains Athia Haron, a medical engineering research associate at the University of Manchester in England and a study co-author.
—Jackie Flynn Mogensen, Scientific American, 20 Jan. 2026
By mid-January, however, treadmills were vacant and elliptical machines were lonely again.
—Mars Salazar, Austin American Statesman, 16 Jan. 2026
The treadmills and other exercise equipment are enclosed in a pod with red-light therapy.
—Angela Caraway-Carlton, Sacbee.com, 14 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for treadmill
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Trefis Team, Forbes.com, 23 Jan. 2026
The machine is basically an eight-meter tunnel of treadmills covered in plastic leaves—about 8,000 of them all stapled on by hand, explains Athia Haron, a medical engineering research associate at the University of Manchester in England and a study co-author.
—Jackie Flynn Mogensen, Scientific American, 20 Jan. 2026
By mid-January, however, treadmills were vacant and elliptical machines were lonely again.
—Mars Salazar, Austin American Statesman, 16 Jan. 2026
The treadmills and other exercise equipment are enclosed in a pod with red-light therapy.
—Angela Caraway-Carlton, Sacbee.com, 14 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for treadmill
Cite this Entry
“Treadmill.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/treadmill. Accessed 28 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
treadmill
noun
tread·mill
ˈtred-ˌmil
1
a
: a device moved by persons treading on steps set around the rim of a wide wheel or by animals walking on an endless belt
b
: a device having an endless belt on which an individual walks or runs in place for exercise or medical testing
2
: a tiring or monotonous routine
Medical Definition
treadmill
noun
tread·mill
ˈtred-ˌmil
: a device having an endless belt on which an individual walks or runs in place that is used for exercise and in tests of physiological functions see stress test
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