congested

adjective

con·​gest·​ed kən-ˈje-stəd 

1

: extremely or excessively full or crowded

The trains ferried orphaned and abandoned kids from the congested East to new families and new lives in the heartland.

… 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

Examples of congested in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The initial stretch spans four congested, wreck-prone miles of Interstate 85, The Charlotte Observer previously reported. —Joe Marusak, Charlotte Observer, 18 Oct. 2025

Workers at Europe’s two biggest seaports have temporarily suspended their labor action as more vessels pile up near the oft-congested gateways. —Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 15 Oct. 2025

The Hub is considered the most congested intersection in Marin, according to the town. —Krissy Waite, Mercury News, 15 Oct. 2025

But Wimbledon fans formed a new club who are now back playing at their spiritual home at Plough Lane, and barring Chelsea, the others have — remarkably, in such a congested city — all found land to build new grounds within the boundaries of their rightful patch. —Michael Cox, New York Times, 11 Oct. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

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