wheelie

noun

wheel·​ie ˈ(h)wē-lē How to pronounce wheelie (audio)
: a maneuver in which a wheeled vehicle (such as a bicycle) is momentarily balanced on its rear wheel or wheels

Examples of wheelie in a Sentence

He did a wheelie on his bike.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
While the team was out and about on an overseas promotional tour, the latest in the 43-year-old cyber saga just didn’t pop wheelies at turnstiles. Nancy Tartaglione, Deadline, 12 Oct. 2025 This estimates the bike's position and mass in real time, and beams that to the rider aids for more precise cornering ABS and wheelie control intervention so the bike can hold a tight line. Abhimanyu Ghoshal, New Atlas, 8 Oct. 2025 Sometimes the pack will follow a lead rider into crowds of pedestrians or in other hazardous behavior such as wheelies or racing. Phil Diehl, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 Sep. 2025 In Mill’s case, popping a wheelie on a motorcycle was considered a violation of his probation in Pennsylvania stemming from a drug and gun charge from 2008, a decade earlier. Chloe Melas, NBC news, 15 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for wheelie

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1965, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of wheelie was circa 1965

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Wheelie.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wheelie. Accessed 22 Oct. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!