Bobsleighs

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A type of sled designed for two or four people, used in the sport of bobsledding on a specially designed track
2. A vehicle that is raced down a twisting, banked track, typically constructed for winter sports competitions
3. A high-speed, aerodynamic sled used in competitive ice racing, allowing teams to navigate through turns at great speeds

Etymology: "Bobsleighs" is the third-person singular present form of the verb "bobsleigh", so the word itself is an inflected form, but the story belongs to the noun it comes from. The vehicle takes its name from "bobs", the short runners it rides on. A conventional sleigh has long runners that run the full length of the vehicle, while the bobsleigh's runners are short, and "bob" is the name for those short runners. The "bob" element is older than the sport. The compound "bob-sled" is attested from 1839, long before anyone raced these vehicles down ice tracks, so the name was applied to a sled design first. The origin of "bob" itself is unclear, so the reason for the name remains uncertain beyond its description of the runners.

Synonyms: sleds, toboggans