spinner wheel

noun

A type of hubcap or inner wheel ornament that spins independently inside of a wheel itself when the vehicle is in motion, and continues to spin once the vehicle has come to a stop.

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Meanings

nounspinner wheel (plural spinner wheels)

plural spinner wheels

  1. A type of hubcap or inner wheel ornament that spins independently inside of a wheel itself when the vehicle is in motion, and continues to spin once the vehicle has come to a stop.
  2. A swivel caster: the combination of a wheel with a swivel joint that allows the wheel to rotate in all directions.

    The appeal of spinner wheels is lost on me. I get that they make the bag easier to maneuver on airport floors, but I can’t see them bouncing along rutted sidewalks very smoothly, at least in their low-end versions.

    2014 April 16, Seth Kugel, “Hunting for the Best Carry-On Bag”, NYTimes.com

Origin

From spinner + wheel.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

spinner wheel. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/spinner%20wheel

MLA

“spinner wheel.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/spinner%20wheel. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “spinner wheel,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/spinner%20wheel.

Source: spinner wheel on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.