Meanings
plural wheelslides
- countableuncountablerail transportA condition caused when railway vehicle wheels lose adhesion when the brakes are applied, due to slippery rails, and the train slides along the track instead of slowing down.
Near-synonyms: skid, skidding
1 more example
Andrew Hall, deputy chief inspector at the Rail Accident Investigation Branch, said: "The evidence suggests the most likely cause of this was wheelslide, almost certainly as a result of low adhesion between the wheels and the track."
2021 November 17, Paul Clifton, “Network News: "Slippery rails" cause train collision at Salisbury”, in RAIL, number 944, page 7
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA condition caused when railway vehicle wheels lose adhesion when the brakes are applied, due to slippery rails, and the train slides along the track instead of slowing down.
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*kʷelh₁-redup.
- Proto-Indo-European*kʷekʷléh₂
- Proto-Germanic*hweulō
- Old Englishhwēol
- Middle Englishwhel
- Englishwheel
- Proto-Indo-European*h₃sleydʰ-
- Proto-Indo-European*h₃sléydʰeti
- Proto-Germanic*slīdaną
- Proto-West Germanic*slīdan
- Old Englishslīdan
- Middle Englishsliden
- Englishslide
- Englishwheelslide
Cite this entry
wheelslide. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/wheelslide
“wheelslide.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/wheelslide. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “wheelslide,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/wheelslide.
Source: wheelslide on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.