toboggan

1 of 2

noun

to·​bog·​gan tə-ˈbä-gən 

1

: a long flat-bottomed light sled made usually of thin boards curved up at one end with usually low handrails at the sides

2

: a downward course or a sharp decline

3

chiefly Southern US and Midland US : stocking cap

Illustration of toboggan

• toboggan 1

toboggan

2 of 2

verb

tobogganed; tobogganing; toboggans

intransitive verb

1

: to coast on or as if on a toboggan

2

: to decline suddenly and sharply

tobogganer noun

tobogganist

tə-ˈbä-gə-nist 

noun

Examples of toboggan in a Sentence

Verb

The kids tobogganed down the hill.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Gstaad Palace, Gstaad, Switzerland This fairytale ski resort hosts 130 miles of pistes, toboggan and sled runs, magnificent winter hiking routes, and the renowned black ‘Tiger Run’ route on the Wasserngrat, accessible by chairlift. —Katharina Kotrba, Forbes, 8 Dec. 2024

Emergency crews found the skier using GPS coordinates from their phone and treated them for multiple injuries, including mild hypothermia, before evacuating them using a rescue toboggan and rope system. —Katie Langford, The Denver Post, 4 Dec. 2024

Verb

Could tobogganing be the next sport that Zendaya tackles? —Jean E. Palmieri, WWD, 15 Oct. 2024

By the end of their nine-hour workday, the red-jacketed patrollers had tobogganed out multiple knee injuries and a broken ankle, responded to a few crashes with trees and patched one bloody chin. —Karin Brulliard, Anchorage Daily News, 17 Mar. 2023

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Canadian French tobogan, of Algonquian origin; akin to Micmac tobâgun drag made of skin

First Known Use

Noun

circa 1820, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1846, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

toboggan

1 of 2 noun

to·​bog·​gan tə-ˈbäg-ən 

: a long light sled made without runners and curved up at the front

toboggan

2 of 2 verb

: to slide on a toboggan