wheeler

noun

wheel·​er ˈ(h)wē-lər 

1

: one that wheels

2

: a draft animal (such as a horse) pulling in the position nearest the front wheels of a wagon

3

: something (such as a vehicle or ship) that has wheels

—used especially in combination

a side-wheeler

18-wheelers

Examples of wheeler in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The scrap gets loaded onto 18-wheelers and hauled away for recycling. —Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 12 June 2026

Interstate 30 is a drag strip full of sedans, SUVs, pickup trucks and 18-wheelers that combine to move at the average speed of 23 mph. —Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 June 2026

The 18-wheelers serving Madison Square Garden, which now trundle in, back out, and cause gridlock on the street, will move through the building’s innards and stay out of sight. —Justin Davidson, Curbed, 8 June 2026

Large-scale construction projects like this will likely require the off-Earth equivalent of 18-wheelers and sprinter vans — the type of spacecraft that Impulse Space is building and deploying now. —Mike Wall, Space.com, 2 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1683, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing wheeler

• eighteen-wheeler
• four-wheeler
• paddle wheeler
• stern-wheeler
• three-wheeler
• two-wheeler
• wheeler and dealer
• wheeler-dealer

Rhymes for wheeler

• dealer
• feeler
• healer
• keeler
• peeler
• sealer
• stealer
• repealer
• revealer

Kids Definition

wheeler

noun

wheel·​er ˈhwē-lər 

ˈwē-

: one of a team of horses that pulls from the position nearest the front wheels of a wagon

Biographical Definition

Wheeler 1 of 2

biographical name (1)

Whee·​ler ˈ(h)wē-lər 

Joseph 1836–1906 American general

Wheeler

2 of 2

biographical name (2)

William Almon 1819–1887 American politician; vice president of the U.S. (1877–81)