1each of a pair of foot-operated levers used for powering a bicycle or other vehicle propelled by the legs.
2a foot-operated throttle, brake, or clutch control in a motor vehicle:a brake pedal
3each of a set of two or three levers on a piano, particularly (also sustaining pedal) one which, when depressed, prevents the dampers from stopping the sound when the keys are released. The second is the soft pedal; a third, if present, produces either selective sustaining or complete muffling of the tone.
a foot-operated lever on other musical instruments, such as an organ.
a foot-operated device for producing a sound effect on an electric guitar.
1 [no object, with adverbial of direction] move by working the pedals of a bicycle:they pedalled along the canal towpath
[with object and adverbial of direction] move (a bicycle) by working its pedals:she was pedalling a bicycle around town
[no object] work the pedals of a bicycle:he was coming down the path on his bike, pedalling hard
2 [no object] use the pedals of a piano, organ, etc., especially in a particular style: (as noun pedalling)Chopin gave no indications of pedalling in his manuscript
with the pedal to the metal
North American informal at full speed (with reference to pressing the accelerator of a car to the floor):she loved careening down the highway with the pedal to the metalsouthern Nevada’s ethic of pedal-to-the-metal growth
