cartwheel

/ˈkɑːtˌwiːl/

//ˈkɑːtˌwiːl// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"cartwheel" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“cartwheel” is uncommon English (frequency #55,998 among 5,599 “C” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#55,998
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The wheel of a cart.

Corpus desk

Index EN-cartwheel · cartwheel · English

cartwheel · rank #55,998 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #55,998
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH Cascadia

Nearest frequency peer: Cascadia (+1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Long-tail ranks near “cartwheel”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “cartwheel” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for cartwheel
PropertyValue
Headwordcartwheel
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈkɑːtˌwiːl/
Letters9
Frequency rank#55,998
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “cartwheel” in English

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).cartwheelfalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Rare peers in the same band: “Cascadia” (#55,999), “Cavite” (#56,001), “Cardwell” (#55,994). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “cartwheel” is #55,998. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

cartwheel is uncommon English at frequency #55,998 among 5,599 “C” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈkɑːtˌwiːl/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

No misspelling variants are generated for cartwheel in our index, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: From cart + wheel. The correct English form is cartwheel, spelled C-A-R-T-W-H-E-E-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    The wheel of a cart.
  2. 2
    A gymnastic maneuver whereby the gymnast rotates to one side or the other while keeping arms and legs outstretched, spinning for one or more revolutions.
  3. 3
    A crown coin; its value, 5 shillings.
  4. 4
    A silver dollar of the larger size produced before 1979.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how cartwheel appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Near-synonyms: wagon wheel, artillery wheel
  2. Half-a-crown is known as an alderman, half a bull, half a tusheroon, and a madza caroon; whilst a crown piece, or five shillings, may be called either a bull, or a caroon, or a cartwheel, or a coachwheel, or a thick-un, or a tusheroon.

Etymology

From cart + wheel.

This word in other languages

roue(Français)Wagenrad(Deutsch)estrela(Português)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "cartwheel"?
"cartwheel" is spelled C-A-R-T-W-H-E-E-L. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkɑːtˌwiːl/.
What does "cartwheel" mean?
As a noun, "cartwheel" means: The wheel of a cart.
How do you pronounce "cartwheel"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "cartwheel" is /ˈkɑːtˌwiːl/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "cartwheel"?
From cart + wheel. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "cartwheel", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

builder's#55,979contusion#56,025Blackfoot#55,960crosstown#56,036

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list