bicycle

Borrowed from French bicycle (modern bicyclette), from bi- (“bi-”) + cycle (“cycle”). First attested in English in 1868, and in French in 1847.

(promiscuous woman): From double meaning of ride ("to transport oneself upon" vs. "to mount someone to have sex with them"). A communal bicycle would have many riders.

• IPA^(key): /ˈbaɪsɪk(ə)l/
• (Canada, idle-idol split) IPA^(key): /ˈbʌɪsɪkəl/

• Audio (US)

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• Audio (UK)

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• Audio (AU)

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• Hyphenation: bi‧cy‧cle

bicycle (plural bicycles)

1. A vehicle that has two wheels, one behind the other, a steering handle, and a saddle seat or seats and is usually propelled by the action of a rider’s feet upon pedals.

   Synonyms: (clipping) bike, pushbike, (historical) velocipede; see also Thesaurus:bicycle

   Hypernym: cycle

   • 1882, “Principle in Small Things”, in Popular Science Monthly, volume 22, page 274:

     In most English villages, as we are informed, bicycles are not allowed on the sidewalks; and the hand-books issued by English manufacturers of bicycles caution their customers that it is a forbidden practice, while in many places bells have to be attached to the bicycles even when ridden in the streets.

2. A traveling block used on a cable in skidding logs.
3. The best possible hand in lowball.
4. (British, Australia, New Zealand) A motorbike.
5. (vulgar slang, usually in compounds specifying a context) A slut; a promiscuous woman.
   • 2002, Minette Walters, Fox Evil, Macmillan, pages 162–3:

     ‘What sort of bullying does this sergeant go in for?’ ‘Character assassination,’ she said in a matter-of-fact tone that belied the very real difficulties it was causing her. ‘There’s a lot of whispering about slags and tarts behind my back and sniggers whenever I appear. Half of the men seem to think I’m a dyke who needs curing, the other half think I’m the platoon bicycle. [...]’

6. (climbing) A stabilizing technique in which one foot is pushed down while the other is pulled up.
7. (poker slang) The wheel: either the lowest straight (A-2-3-4-5) or the best low hand in Lowball or High-low poker.

• → Burmese: ဘိုင်စကယ် (bhuingca.kai)
• → Malay: basikal
• → Maltese: bajsikil
• → Papiamentu: baiskel
• → Sranan Tongo: baisigri
• → Swahili: baiskeli
• → Urdu: بائیسِکَل (bāīsikal)

bicycle (third-person singular simple present bicycles, present participle bicycling, simple past and past participle bicycled)

1. (transitive, intransitive) To travel or exercise using a bicycle.
   • 1903 December 26, A[rthur] Conan Doyle, “The Adventure of the Solitary Cyclist”, in The Return of Sherlock Holmes, New York, N.Y.: McClure, Phillips & Co., published February 1905, →OCLC:

     “At least it cannot be your health," said he, as his keen eyes darted over her; "so ardent a bicyclist must be full of energy.” […] “Yes, I bicycle a good deal, Mr. Holmes, and that has something to do with my visit to you to-day.”

2. (television, historical, transitive) To physically ship (a recorded programme) to another broadcasting entity.
   • 2002, Roger Phillips Smith, The Other Face of Public Television, page 56:

     “Bicycling” defeated the possibility of topicality, a prime production habit of the network-trained production executives staffing the new entity.

   • 2014, Horace Newcomb, Encyclopedia of Television, page 177:

     In turn, two-inch tapes of these could be “bicycled” from one place to another across the country, thereby altering and improving production economies.

• bécik

• IPA^(key): /bi.sikl/

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bicycle m (plural bicycles)

1. bicycle

   Synonym: bicyclette

• bicyclette

• → English: bicycle
• → Polish: bicykl

• “bicycle”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.