roller

UK/ˈɹəʊlə/US/ˈɹoʊlɚ/

roller noun: any rotating cylindrical device that is part of a machine, especially one used to apply or reduce pressure.

Image: Dave Green, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Noun (1)

roller (plural rollers)

Any rotating cylindrical device that is part of a machine, especially one used to apply or reduce pressure.
A cylindrical (or approximately cylindrical) item used under a heavy object to facilitate moving it; usually several are needed.
A person who rolls something, such as cigars or molten metal.
A large rolling device used to flatten a grass surface; commonly in relation to a cricket pitch.
A cylindrical tool for applying paint or ink.
- The deposit of color on the stone is transmitted to the metal by the lithographic roller the same as for paper.1857, Patents for Inventions: Abridgments of Specifications, page 118
Synonyms:

paint roller, rolling paint brush, rolling brush
An agricultural machine used for flattening land and breaking up lumps of earth.
One of a set of small cylindrical tubes used to curl hair.
A roller towel.
A small wheel, as of a caster, a roller skate, etc.
- The cable used for hauling the wagons on the incline may still be seen, but several of the guiding rollers have disappeared.1947 March and April, “Notes and News: The Edge Hill Light Railway”, in Railway Magazine, page 116
A rolling element inside a roller bearing: a small cylinder or sphere of metal.
One of a set of rolling cylinders allowing a rider to practise balance while training indoors.
Any insect whose larva rolls up leaves, especially those in family Tortricidae.

Show 14 more meaningsShow fewer meanings

A dung beetle that rolls dung into balls.
A cylinder snakes, small ground snakes of the genus Cylindrophis.
A rolling pin
(disc golf) A throw which involves the player throwing the disc in a way that makes it roll, by that being able to travel further than if thrown in the air. Only used on holes with open areas with short or no grass.
- He threw a beautiful roller that cut the corner perfectly and stopped just outside the circle.
A long wide bandage used in surgery.
A large, wide, curling wave that falls back on itself as it breaks on a coast.
- He and Gerald usually challenged the rollers in a sponson canoe when Gerald was there for the weekend ; or, when Lansing came down, the two took long swims seaward or cruised about in Gerald's dory, clad in their swimming-suits ; and Selwyn's youth became renewed in a manner almost ridiculous,[…].1907 August, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, chapter IX, in The Younger Set, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, →OCLC
- A road that runs due west from Dale passes the village church and Dale Castle, and a footpath continues to Westdale Bay, a sandy beach used by surfers when the westerlies send great rollers crashing in from the Atlantic.1980, AA Book of British Villages, Drive Publications Ltd, page 141
A breed or variety of roller pigeon that rolls (i.e. tumbles or somersaults) backwards (compare Penson roller, Birmingham roller, tumbler).
Any of various nonpasserine birds constituting the family Coraciidae, having stocky bodies, large heads, and stout bills hooked at the tip.
- In such places I found a good many birds, among which were the fine cream-coloured pigeon, Carpophaga luctuosa, and the rare blue-headed roller, Coracias temmincki, which has a most discordant voice, and generally goes in pairs, flying from tree to tree, and exhibiting while at rest that...1869, Alfred Russel Wallace, The Malay Archipelago, volume I, London: Macmillan and Co., page 333
A police patrol car or patrolman (rather than an unmarked police car or a detective)
A padded surcingle that is used on horses for training and vaulting.
A roll of titles or (especially) credits played over film or video; television or film credits.
- I learned a lot from watching, but the part that I should have studied harder was the roller. The names of the writers went on for ever.2006, Clive James, North Face of Soho, Picador, published 2007, page 69
(slang) A wheelchair user.
(informal, slang) A Rolls-Royce motorcar.
(slang) A type break that consists of drum rolls; a drum and bass track made with such breaks.

Verb

roller (third-person singular simple present rollers, present participle rollering, simple past and past participle rollered)

(intransitive) To roller skate.
- One day Frankie rollered up our drive and asked me if I fancied a skate.2020, Nick Hughes, Bahama Boyz, page 138

Noun (2) capitalized: Roller

Roller (plural Rollers)

(slang) A Rolls-Royce car
- Only I thought private eyes were supposed to be discreet; you could hardly call yourself that when you drive a Roller.1991, Sally Wentworth, Taken on Trust, page 9

roller meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu

roller in Hindi

a roller, rolling pin: बेलना belnā

roller in Tamil

உருளை

roller in Marathi

रोलर

roller in Urdu

بیلن

More languagesFewer languages

roller in Bengali: বেলন, ডলান, ক্ষতবধনী, ডলন
roller in Telugu: రోలర్, రోలరు, రోలర్ చేయడం
roller in Malayalam: ഉരുൾത്തടി, ഉരുൾ, റോളർ
roller in Kannada: ಕಣಿ, ಉರುಳಿಸುವ ಸಾಧನ, ಹೊರಳಿಸುವ ಸಾಧನ, ಸುರುಳಿ ಸುತ್ತುವ ಸಾಧನ
roller in Punjabi: ਰੋਲਰ, ਇੱਕ ਰੋਲਰ
roller in Gujarati: રોલર
roller in Odia: ରୋଲର୍, ରୋଲର୍ |, ରୋଲରିଂ
roller in Nepali: रोलर
roller in Tagalog: paralis, rodilyo
roller in Persian: سبزقبا sabzeqabâ, سبزک sabzak, سبزگرا sabzegarâ

Examples of roller in a sentence

Hold on to my umbrella while I ride the roller coaster.
As there was a lot of damage, we chose the heavy roller to flatten the pitch.
Take it easy on the roller coasters or you're going to chuck up your lunch.

All 40 example sentences with roller

Synonyms of roller

paint roller
rolling paint brush
rolling brush

Forms of roller

Noun
plural	rollers
plural	Rollers
Verb
third-person singular present	rollers
present participle	rollering
past participle	rollered
past	rollered

Plural of roller: rollers

Origin of roller

* From Middle English rollere, equivalent to roll + -er. * (credits in TV or film): These were originally printed on a physical cylinder that was rotated in front of the camera.

Words formed from roller

Words that rhyme with roller

34 more rhymesFewer rhymes

Questions about roller

What does roller mean?: Roller means any rotating cylindrical device that is part of a machine, especially one used to apply or reduce pressure.
What is roller in Hindi?: Roller in Hindi is बेलना (belnā). See Roller meaning in Hindi.
What part of speech is roller?: Roller can be a noun or a verb.
How do you pronounce roller?: Roller is pronounced /ˈɹəʊlə/ (UK).
What is the plural of roller?: The plural of roller is rollers.

Words near roller in the dictionary

Adapted from Wiktionary: roller (page history and authors); Roller (page history and authors); बेलना (Hindi) (page history and authors); roller (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors); roller (Marathi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); roller (Urdu Wiktionary) (page history and authors); roller (Bengali Wiktionary) (page history and authors); roller (Telugu, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); roller (Malayalam Wiktionary) (page history and authors); roller (Kannada Wiktionary) (page history and authors); roller (Punjabi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); roller (Gujarati, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); roller (Odia, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); roller (Nepali, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-au-roller.ogg.

Cite this entry: “roller.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/roller. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.