Link Centre Dictionary

sledge

UK/slɛd͡ʒ/ US/ˈslɛdʒ/ uncommon uk
noun (2) verb (3)

noun

1.

a vehicle mounted on runners and pulled by horses or dogs; for transportation over snow

Synonyms
2.

a heavy long-handled hammer used to drive stakes or wedges

Synonyms

verb

1.
2.

ride in or travel with a sledge

  • “the antarctic expedition sledged along the coastline”
  • “The children sledged all day by the lake”
3.

beat with a sledgehammer

Synonyms

Origin

From Sledge (“a surname”), influenced by sledgehammer. First attested in the 1960s in Australian English. According to Ian Chappell, originated in Adelaide during the 1963/4 or 1964/5 Sheffield Shield season. A cricketer who swore in the presence of a woman was taken to be as subtle as a sledgehammer (meaning unsubtle) and was called “Percy” or “Sledge”, from singer Percy Sledge (whose song When a Man Loves a Woman was a hit at the time). Directing insults or obscenities at the opposition team then became known as sledging.

Phrases

  • dog sledge
  • ice sledge
  • sledge brake
  • sledge chair
  • sledge hockey
  • sledge racing
  • threshing sledge

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Narrower terms

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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.