vélocipède

See also: velocipede

French

A velocipede.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ve.lɔ.si.pɛd/
• Hyphenation: vé‧lo‧ci‧pède

Etymology 1

(1804) A compound from veloci- + ped-, the combinatory stems of Latin velox (“rapid, prompt”) and pes (“foot”). Compare vélocifère.

It originally referred to a locomotion device consisting of a seat on two or three wheels, driven primarily by impact of the feet against the ground. Later pedals were introduced. (see picture)

Noun

vélocipède m (plural vélocipèdes)

1. a velocipede
2. bicycles in general

Synonyms

• bicyclette
• draisienne, draisine
• vélo

Derived terms

• vélo

Descendants

• → Belarusian: веласіпе́д (vjelasipjéd)
• → Bulgarian: велосипе́д (velosipéd)
• → Catalan: velocípede
• → Danish: væltepeter
• → English: velocipede
• → Finnish: velosipedi
• → Georgian: ველოსიპედი (velosiṗedi)
• → German: Veloziped
• → Indonesian: sepeda
• → Japanese: ベロシペード (beroshipēdo), ベロチペード (berochipēdo)
• → Latvian: velosipēds
• → Macedonian: велосипед (velosiped)
• → Polish: welocyped
• → Russian: велосипе́д (velosipéd) (see there for further descendants)
• → Serbo-Croatian: велосипед / velosiped
• → Spanish: velocípedo
• → Ukrainian: велосипе́д (velosypéd)
• → Yiddish: וועלאָסיפּעד (velosipéd)

Etymology 2

Verb

vélocipède

1. first-person singular indicative present of vélocipéder
2. third-person singular indicative present of vélocipéder
3. first-person singular subjunctive present of vélocipéder
4. third-person singular subjunctive present of vélocipéder
5. second-person singular imperative of vélocipéder

Further reading

• “vélocipède”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.