The wheel is the last part of a bob and wheel stanza in alliterative poetry. It is a short set of rhyming lines, usually four lines, that follows the brief bob and ends a stanza with a quick rhythmic turn.
Poets use the wheel to give the stanza a closing echo and a more regular rhyme after the looser, heavily stressed alliterative lines.
Example
The knight rode on through storm and sleet,
His banner torn, his helm unmade;
Yet in the dark his heart beat fast,
For dawn would come and shadows fade.
Related Definitions
[n] a cycle that has two wheels; moved by foot pedals
[n] a handwheel that is used for steering
[n] an instrument of torture that stretches or disjoints or mutilates victims
[n] game equipment consisting of a rotating wheel with slots that is used for gambling; players bet on which slot the roulette ball will stop in
[n] a simple machine consisting of a circular frame with spokes (or a solid disc) that can rotate on a shaft or axle (as in vehicles or other machines)
[n] a circular helm to control the rudder of a vessel
[v] move along on or as if on wheels or a wheeled vehicle; "The President's convoy rolled past the crowds"
[v] ride a bicycle
[v] change directions as of revolving on a pivot; "They wheeled their horses around and left"
[v] wheel somebody or something
Synonyms
bicycle, bicycle, bike, bike, cycle, pedal, rack, roll, roulette wheel, steering wheel, wheel around