Roller skates are shoes with small wheels attached to the bottom that let you glide smoothly across flat surfaces. Unlike ice skates that need frozen water, roller skates work on sidewalks, rinks, or any smooth pavement.

Traditional roller skates have four wheels arranged in a rectangle, two in front and two in back, which makes them stable and easy to balance on. Inline skates (often called Rollerblades) line up the wheels in a single row, making them faster but trickier to control. Both types use the same basic idea: you push off with one foot while the other glides forward on its wheels, building momentum with each stride.

Roller skating became wildly popular in the 1970s and 1980s, when roller rinks were packed with people skating in circles to music. Today, people roller skate for exercise, transportation, or fun. Some skaters perform tricks and jumps, while others just enjoy the feeling of rolling smoothly down a bike path.

The verb form means to move around while wearing roller skates. You might roller-skate to a friend's house or go roller skating at a rink on Saturday afternoon.