merry-go-round

noun

mer·​ry-go-round ˈmer-ē-gō-ˌrau̇nd 

-gə-

1

a

: an amusement park ride with seats often in the form of animals (such as horses) revolving about a fixed center

The children grabbed each other by the hand and danced off in the direction of the merry-go-round, toward the wonderful music and the wonderful adventure and the wonderful excitement …

—E. B. White

called also carousel

b

: a children's playground apparatus consisting of a platform that revolves about a fixed center

And every day at recess, Reuben would push us on the merry-go-round on the playground. He would push us really fast, and we all thought Reuben made recess great fun—as long as we held on tight and didn't fall off as we whirled around.

—Terri Auchter

2

: a cycle of activity that is complex, fast-paced, or difficult to break out of

the corporate merry-go-round

Synonyms

• circle
• cycle
• round
• wheel
• zodiac

Examples of merry-go-round in a Sentence

weary of the daily merry-go-round of commuting to his job in the city

Recent Examples on the Web

That’s perhaps best exemplified by the work that opens the show, a 2023 sculpture, Social Media (White Poodle), showing the titular canine on a merry-go-round with a black-and-white spiral pattern. —Maximilíano Durón, ARTnews.com, 6 Sep. 2024

The Orioles needed Urías’ big fly because of a merry-go-round fifth that included a string of hits against Corbin Burnes, the ace’s disinterest in holding runners and a fumble from Urías at third. —Jacob Calvin Meyer, Baltimore Sun, 11 Aug. 2024

For the next fourteen years, Kennedy has said, his life was a merry-go-round of chasing a high and coming down into a deep despair. —Clare Malone, The New Yorker, 5 Aug. 2024

Address: Griffith Park, merry-go-round lot 1 or 2, 4668 Crystal Springs Drive, Los Angeles —Jaime Vargas Sr., San Bernardino Upper Cabin Trail Loop Distance and elevation gain: 8.8-mile loop, 2,683 feet Why? —Deborah Vankin, Los Angeles Times, 29 July 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1729, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

merry-go-round

noun

mer·​ry-go-round

ˈmer-ē-gō-ˌrau̇nd,

-gə-

1

: a circular revolving platform fitted with seats and figures of animals on which people sit for a ride

2

: a rapid round of activities : whirl

a merry-go-round of parties