# bicycle

Pronunciation: say "BY-si-kuhl" /ˈbaɪsɪk(ə)l/

## Noun

1. A vehicle with two wheels, one behind the other, a seat, and handlebars, usually moved by pedals; loosely, a similar pedal vehicle with another number of wheels.
   - Simple: A vehicle with two wheels, a seat, and handlebars that you ride by pushing pedals.
   - _He pumped the tires before taking the bicycle out for a long ride._
   - _The shop repairs bicycles of every size and style._
3. A vulgar, derogatory term for a promiscuous woman, often appearing in a compound such as town bicycle. *(slang)*
   - Simple: A rude, insulting word for a woman believed to have many sexual partners.
   - _Gossip painted her as the town bicycle long after she had moved away._
   - _He sneered that the new clerk was nothing but the office bicycle._

## Verb

2. To travel or exercise by riding a bicycle.
   - Simple: To ride a bicycle to get somewhere or to exercise.
   - _Many commuters bicycle to work when the weather is mild._
   - _She bicycles through the park every morning._

## Other meanings

- (noun) In lowball and high-low poker, the hand ace, two, three, four, five, the lowest straight and the best possible low hand in games where straights do not spoil a low hand.
- (noun) A stabilizing technique in climbing in which one foot pushes down while the other pulls up.
- (verb) In broadcasting, to physically transport a recorded program from one station to another for airing.
- (noun) In logging, a traveling block that rides along a cable to skid felled logs.

## Origin

Borrowed from French bicycle (now bicyclette), formed from bi- ("two") plus cycle ("cycle"). It was first attested in English in 1868.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/bicycle (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).