seesaw
a recreation in which two children alternately ride up and down while seated at opposite ends of a plank balanced at the middle.
a plank or apparatus for this recreation.
an up-and-down or a back-and-forth movement or procedure.
Whist. a crossruff.
moving up and down, back and forth, or alternately ahead and behind: It was a seesaw game with the lead changing hands many times.
to move in a seesaw manner: The boat seesawed in the heavy sea.
to ride or play on a seesaw.
to keep changing one's decision, opinion, or attitude; vacillate.
to cause to move in a seesaw manner.
Origin of seesaw
1regional variation note For seesaw
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use seesaw in a sentence
If Michelle Shocked was in politics, her nickname might be “The See-Saw.”
Lindsay Lohan, Jay Leno & More Celebrities’ Week in Hell (Photos) | Anna Klassen | March 23, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTAfter months of see-saw battles in the Sahara Desert, Libya's rebels are now making their first serious push to Tripoli.
A broad base of support in the middle brings balance to the see-saw of political power.
Over the last century, American politics has tended to see-saw between panics about immigrants and panics about blacks.
We could see saw-logs go by in the daylight sometimes, but we let them go; we didn't show ourselves in daylight.
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Complete | Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens)
But when it comes to measurin' something that's precious to me, I'll not thrust it to a slight improvement on a see-saw.
Mr. Dooley Says | Finley DunneFor these two tendencies throughout the world are like a see-saw.
Home Rule | Harold SpenderBut no, there she was, shuffling down a side street with her heavy see-saw hip-motion.
The Open Question | Elizabeth RobinsAnd we know the consequences of it—the sweet little see-saw of hope and fear, productive of unlimited discussion and anxiety.
The History of Sir Richard Calmady | Lucas Malet
British Dictionary definitions for seesaw
/ (ˈsiːˌsɔː) /
a plank balanced in the middle so that two people seated on the ends can ride up and down by pushing on the ground with their feet
the pastime of riding up and down on a seesaw
an up-and-down or back-and-forth movement
(as modifier): a seesaw movement
(intr) to move up and down or back and forth in such a manner; oscillate
Origin of seesaw
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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