bottleneck 1 of 3

noun

Definition of bottlenecknext
as in jam
a crowded mass (as of cars) that impedes or blocks movement a bottleneck inevitably forms at the start of a construction zone when the highway narrows from three to two lanes

Synonyms & Similar Words

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bottleneck

2 of 3

adjective

as in linear

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

bottleneck

3 of 3

verb

as in to dam

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of bottleneck
Noun
As the company grows, more people, more complexity, more decisions, that same model becomes a bottleneck. — Monte Wyatt, Forbes.com, 1 Oct. 2026 If those three zones overlap on the same stretch of counter, that overlap is your bottleneck, not the room’s size. — Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Miami Herald, 1 Oct. 2026
Verb
The demand for slots skyrocketed and the auction prices ballooned in recent weeks as a standoff between the Iran and the United States over access to the strait kept traffic bottlenecked. — Alma Solís, Los Angeles Times, 28 Apr. 2026 Yet, sparse computations on the CPU are often bottlenecked by the indirect lookups used to find nonzero data. — Olivia Hsu, IEEE Spectrum, 28 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for bottleneck
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bottleneck
  1. jam
  2. linear
  3. dam
  4. congestion
  5. compressed
  6. clog
  7. tight
  8. hinder
Noun
  • Ben Jones as Cooter Davenport Ben Jones played Cooter Davenport, the lovable mechanic who was always ready to help the Duke boys out of a jam, with a garage that served as both a workplace and hideout when needed.
    — Tereza Shkurtaj, PEOPLE, 27 Sep. 2026
  • The only problem is that the lyrics aren’t really more comprehensible than actual Katseye jams.
    — Bethy Squires, Vulture, 27 Sep. 2026
Definition of jam
Adjective
  • That’s one romantic notion of many in a free-floating relationship drama, which employs an intuitively non-linear structure to enliven what is otherwise a fairly conventional, ordinary love story between two attractive but imperfect people.
    — Guy Lodge, Variety, 25 Sep. 2026
  • The northern bypass channel will be 3,900 linear feet long and 300 feet wide at the bottom, according to the Army Corps.
    — Emily Holshouser, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of linear
Verb
  • Then dams and expanding farmlands dried it up and turned it into a patchwork of fields, roads and towns.
    — Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 26 Sep. 2026
  • Mormon Flat, which dams Canyon Lake, was constructed in 1925, and is one of SRP’s oldest dams.
    — Sarah Henry, AZCentral.com, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of dam
Noun
  • Avoiding warehouse congestion may be more important than maximizing inbound utilization.
    — Amruth Puppala, Forbes.com, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Respondents supported making roads safer, addressing congestion and maintaining the city’s parks and bike trails.
    — Haley Parsley, Sacbee.com, 29 Sep. 2026
Definition of congestion
Adjective
  • Digging into the character was all the more challenging for both Pitt and Ayer given the compressed pre-production schedule and swift shoot, which required them to hit the ground running.
    — Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 25 Sep. 2026
  • Meantime, semiconductor stocks and most of the mega-cap tech platforms were convalescing as AI-overspending fears eroded investor conviction and compressed valuations.
    — Michael Santoli, CNBC, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of compressed
Verb
  • Ice later clogged three center engines, and ended the maneuver early.
    — Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 28 Sep. 2026
  • Some inland flash flooding will be possible, especially in areas with poor drainage, where blown leaves can clog storm drains, or where the heaviest bands of rain move through.
    — Kyle Reiman, ABC News, 26 Sep. 2026
Definition of clog
Adjective
  • If Trump does push ahead, his main cheerleaders will be GOP candidates in tight races this fall who are eager to market more ideas to lower costs before the midterms.
    — Eleanor Mueller, semafor.com, 25 Sep. 2026
  • Broader cultural adoption driven by testimonials like Smith’s, and tighter clinical guardrails as physicians push back on unsupervised extended fasts.
    — Hanna Wickes, Sacbee.com, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of tight
Verb
  • Those ideas been ruled out, however, due to the possibility that people would not secure the helmets correctly and that closed cars would hinder emergency evacuations.
    — Lynette Rice, Deadline, 30 Sep. 2026
  • The assassination of local councilwoman Marielle Franco inspired some Black women to run for office, Matos Almeida said, but political violence and insufficient resources continue to hinder the participation of women in politics.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of hinder

Browse Nearby Words

bottle-feeds
bottleneck
bottlenecked
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Bottleneck.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bottleneck. Accessed 3 Oct. 2026.

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