Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A vehicle mounted on runners for use on snow or ice, having one or more seats and usually drawn by a horse.
  • intransitive verb To ride in or drive a sleigh.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To drive or take the air in a sleigh.
  • A Middle English form of sly.
  • noun A vehicle, mounted on runners, for transporting persons on the snow or ice; a sled.
  • noun A form of drag-carriage for the transport of artillery in countries where much snow falls; also, the carriage on which heavy guns are moved when in store, by means of rollers placed underneath the carriage and worked by handspikes.
  • noun The slender fore part of the lower jaw of a whale, containing the teeth: same as coach, 5. See pan, 12.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • adjective obsolete Sly.
  • noun A vehicle moved on runners, and used for transporting persons or goods on snow or ice; -- in England commonly called a sledge.
  • noun a small bell attached either to a horse when drawing a slegh, or to the sleigh itself; especially a globular bell with a loose ball which plays inside instead of a clapper.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective obsolete Sly
  • noun A vehicle, generally pulled by an animal, which moves over snow or ice on runners, used for transporting persons or goods. (contrast "sled", which is smaller)
  • verb To ride or drive a sleigh.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb ride (on) a sled
  • noun a vehicle mounted on runners and pulled by horses or dogs; for transportation over snow

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Dutch slee, variant of slede, from Middle Dutch.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Dutch slee.

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word sleigh.

Examples

  • And why is that Christmas songs always use the word sleigh instead of sled?

    Around the fire e 2008

  • And why is that Christmas songs always use the word sleigh instead of sled?

    Archive 2008-07-01 e 2008

  • Synopsis: A bunch of writers conjure the story of Satan Claus, monstrous legend of Christmas whose sleigh is pulled by eight black pigs with demonic eyes.

    REVIEW: Alternate Gerrolds by David Gerrold 2005

  • Kincaid believed it was called a sleigh bed, and again, probably a reproduction.

    A Share in Death Deborah Crombie 1993

  • Above was a broad shelf, wide enough for him to lie on, and covered with an old catskin sleigh robe.

    Beautiful Joe: An Autobiography 1893

  • a wee like a storm, and my sleigh is at the blacksmith's to be shod.

    The Story Girl Lucy Maud 1911

  • Since Mr. Claus follows a rewards system based on merit rather than entitlement, the reindeer eagerly compete to be chosen for Christmas duty and the lucky eight or nine who guide his sleigh are the envy of animals all over the world.

    Consumers Still Reluctant to Upgrade to Santa 2.0 2010

  • Later, seated on the warm cushions of the sleigh and skimming over the countryside, Harkins reflected proudly that his commandeering of the sleigh was a master stroke.

    Christmas on Ganymede and Other Stories Greenberg, Martin H. 1990

  • The sleigh was a beautiful one, built of mahogany, and the pair of horses wore real silver mountings on their harness.

    The Red Cross Girls with the Russian Army Margaret Vandercook

  • Snugly tucked under the seat of his sleigh was a four-gallon keg and a box.

    Stories Worth Rereading Various

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.