pedal
noun
ped·al
| \ ˈpe-dᵊl
\
\
Definition of pedal
(Entry 1 of 3)
1
: a lever pressed by the foot in the playing of a musical instrument (such as an organ or piano)
2
: a foot lever or treadle by which a part is activated in a mechanism
a bike's pedals
pedal
adjective
ped·al
Definition of pedal (Entry 2 of 3)
1
\ ˈpe-dᵊl
also ˈpē- \
: of or relating to the foot
also ˈpē- \
: of or relating to the foot
2
\ ˈpe-dᵊl
\
: of, relating to, or involving a pedal
\
: of, relating to, or involving a pedal
pedal
verb
ped·al
| \ ˈpe-dᵊl
\
\
pedaled
also pedalled;
pedaling
also pedalling\ ˈpe-dᵊl-iŋ
, ˈped-liŋ \
, ˈped-liŋ \
Definition of pedal (Entry 3 of 3)
: to work the pedals of
Examples of pedal in a Sentence
Verb
He was pedaling as fast as he could. He pedaled down to the store.Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
The way American Jews chose to manage the tricky road, between the declaration of a Jewish State on the one hand and their loyalty to America on the other, was a kind of soft-pedal Zionism. — Joseph Hincks, Time, "How Trump Fits Into the Long, Fraught History of the Relationship Between Israel and American Jews," 20 Aug. 2019 Reports say the girl hit the wrong pedal and accelerated, striking Enrique Vazquez, 47, and his dog, killing them both. — Cliff Pinckard, cleveland.com, "Texas man lets daughter, 12, drive SUV; she hits, kills man and dog, police say," 19 Aug. 2019 That was enough to motor down the road at a comfortable casual pace, and the 228 lb-ft of torque from the 150 kW, 201-hp motor was enough to spin up some dirt when mashing the pedal from a stop. — Eric Adams, WIRED, "VW Revives the Classic Dune Buggy as an All-Electric Blast," 17 Aug. 2019 But while hopping on your bike and pedaling to your first class seems easy enough, here are some tips to navigating one of the most pedal-friendly cities there is. — Molly Bohannon, azcentral, "ASU students, here's what you need to know about biking in Tempe," 13 Aug. 2019 The Northridge quake was like a driver flooring the accelerator pedal of a sports car. — Rong-gong Lin Ii, latimes.com, "Ridgecrest earthquake packed the power of 45 nuclear bombs, but its impact was muted," 13 July 2019 Suddenly, the car accelerated forward, into the traffic lane, as though someone had pressed the accelerator pedal to the floor. — Freep.com, "FREE PRESS INVESTIGATION: OUT OF GEAR Ford knew Focus, Fiesta models had flawed transmission, sold them anyway," 11 July 2019 The company has also sponsored in-house cooking events, scavenger hunts and ridden the pedal wagon. — Anne Saker, Cincinnati.com, "Top Workplaces Cincinnati: HealthWorks, Queen City Homecare and Our Lady lead small division," 5 June 2019 There remains a driver airbag in the steering wheel, but the wheel (as well as the pedals) retract into the dashboard when the ESF 2019 is in self-driving mode, to reduce potential injuries from impacts with those protrusions. — Alexander Stoklosa, Car and Driver, "The Mercedes-Benz ESF Is a One-Car Showcase of the Way Safety Will Look in Vehicles of the Future," 20 May 2019Recent Examples on the Web: Verb
The pedal moves very smoothly and 10 people pedaling [lightly] can really move the boat along. — Lauren Daley, BostonGlobe.com, "Cycling on the water with beer? It’s real, and it’s in Boston," 20 Aug. 2019 Earlier, police said, a robber on a ride-share bicycle took someone’s property in the 1400 block of Rhode Island Avenue NW and pedaled away, heading west on N Street. — Martin Weil, Washington Post, "Bicycles used in 2 street robberies and an attempted robbery Sunday, police say," 21 July 2019 Politicians in this growing city pursue cycling as a mode of transportation to the fullest potential, prioritizing pedaling over driving, aiming to double bicycle commuting traffic by 2030. — Copenhagenize Design Co., WIRED, "The 20 Most Bike-Friendly Cities on the Planet, Ranked," 27 June 2019 In the video, Alicea looked behind him and began to pedal faster as a silver Toyota Camry approached. — Christine Dempsey, courant.com, "Hartford police make third arrest in homicide behind Bulkeley High," 2 Aug. 2019 Or rent a bike from the Bublr bike hare program to pedal around the city at your own pace. — Travel Wisconsin, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Visit Milwaukee and Wisconsin this summer, before the world does in 2020," 14 July 2019 Hoyt-McBeth said e-bikes, which allow rider to more easily pedal up hills, could be a gamechanger, particularly as the city eyes expansion to Southwest Portland. — oregonlive.com, "Portland eyes citywide Biketown expansion in 2020, with e-bikes as well," 26 June 2019 With the power assist setting in the brand’s app maxed out, the Gocycle’s lighter 36.3-pound magnesium frame is remarkably easy to pedal up steep hills compared with its bigger rivals. — Ashley Mateo, WSJ, "Should You Trade in Your Car for an E-Bike?," 20 June 2019 As expected, the bike is hard to pedal without power due to that single gear. — Thomas Ricker, The Verge, "First look: Cowboy proves the e-bikes with removable batteries can be beautiful," 8 June 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'pedal.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for pedal
pedal
noun
English Language Learners Definition of pedal
(Entry 1 of 2)
: a flat piece of metal, rubber, etc., that you push with your foot to make a machine move, work, or stop
: a lever on a piano, organ, etc., that you push with your foot to make or change a sound
pedal
verb
English Language Learners Definition of pedal (Entry 2 of 2)
: to push the pedals of (something, such as a bicycle)
: to ride a bicycle to a particular place
See the full definition for pedal in the English Language Learners Dictionary
pedal
noun
ped·al
| \ ˈpe-dᵊl
\
\
Kids Definition of pedal
(Entry 1 of 2)
: a lever worked by the foot or feet
pedal
verb
pedaled
also pedalled;
pedaling
also pedalling
Kids Definition of pedal (Entry 2 of 2)
: to use or work levers with a foot or feet
She's learning how to pedal a bicycle.