Seesaw Meaning
/ˈsiː.sɔː/Definition, CEFR level A1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounA structure composed of a plank, balanced in the middle, used as a game in which one person goes up as the other goes down.
nounA series of up-and-down movements.
Sentence Examples
Two girls played on the seesaw.
Tom and Mary were playing on the seesaw.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
None
CEFR Practice Quiz
The two girls laughed as they went up and down on the ____.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The children took turns on the ____ in the playground after school.
Word Origin & History
Probably a frequentative imitative of rhythmic back-and-forth, up-and-down or zigzagging motion, such as teeter-totter, zigzag, flip-flop, ping pong, etc., under the umbrella term of reduplication; also likely influenced by the verbs see and saw of either present or past tense.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"He has been arguing in a circle; there is thus a see-saw between the hypothesis and the fact."
— a. 1857, William Hamilton, edited by H[enry] L[ongueville] Mansel and John Veitch, Lectures on Metaphysics and Logic […], volume (please specify |volume=I to IV), Edinburgh; London: William Blackwood and Sons, published 1859–1860, →OCLC:
"Manchester Citykept up their unbeaten start to the Premier League season with victory over QPR in an entertaining see-saw encounter at Loftus Road."
— 2011 November 5, Phil Dawkes, “QPR 2 - 3 Man City”, in BBC Sport:
"When I think of your kisses / My mind see-saws"
— 1971, “All I Want”, in Blue, performed by Joni Mitchell:
"He see-saws himself to and fro."
— 1832, Edward Bulwer-Lytton, Eugene Aram:
Explore More A1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The two girls laughed as they went up and down on the ____.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The children took turns on the ____ in the playground after school.