congested

1 of 2

adjective

con·​gest·​ed kən-ˈje-stəd 

1

: extremely or excessively full or crowded

… it must be clear that the continuance is not being granted solely because of the court's congested calendar.

—The National Law Journal

Under the pressure of the weather conditions, congested traffic and wind shear, the crew never was able to stabilize the airplane on the ILS approach into JFK and had to execute a missed approach.

—Patrick R. Veillette

2

medical : containing an excessive accumulation especially of blood or mucus

congested lungs/sinuses

congested

2 of 2

past tense and past participle of congest

Examples of congested in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Which, on some of the most congested and chaotic streets in the country, could create some pretty serious headaches. — Matthew Sedacca, Curbed, 14 Sep. 2026

California ranked as the third most congested state in the country in 2025, with drivers in major cities losing more than 100 hours a year to traffic, according to the TomTom Traffic Index. — Sacbee.com, 9 Sep. 2026

What shouldn’t be lost in all of this is that the Midway District right now is generally a congested, outdated and ugly area in desperate need of redevelopment. — Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Sep. 2026

Even now, many within the club still believe that Espart will eventually end up in midfield, despite the path being very congested. — Laia Cervelló Herrero, New York Times, 5 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

circa 1830, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for congested

• arrested
• attested
• contested
• detested
• digested
• divested
• infested
• ingested
• invested
• molested
• pretested
• protested

Medical Definition

congested

adjective

con·​gest·​ed kən-ˈjes-təd 

: containing an excessive accumulation especially of blood or mucus

congested mucous membranes

congested lungs