guardrail

noun guard·rail \ ˈgärd-ˌrāl \

|Updated on: 13 Jun 2018

Definition of guardrail

: a railing guarding usually against danger; especially : a barrier placed along the edge of a highway at dangerous points

See guardrail defined for English-language learners

See guardrail defined for kids

Examples of guardrail in a Sentence

the car ran off the road, but fortunately only hit the guardrail

Recent Examples of guardrail from the Web

The effort is, at this point, one of the few effective Republican attempts to install guardrails around a president who delights in defying advice and breaking the rules.

— CBS News, "Inside the Republican strategy to save Jeff Sessions," 31 May 2018
After his truck struck the right guardrail, the vehicle flipped and landed on the ground.

— maria clark, NOLA.com, "Man dies after his truck flips over guardrail on I-10 near Airline," 28 May 2018
The work will also include replacing the shoulders and guardrails and making drainage improvements, according to IDOT.

— mike nolan, Daily Southtown, "Road projects on tap for summer in several south, southwest suburbs," 26 May 2018
Both Republicans and Democrats sounded the alarm and backed legislation to put guardrails around the president.

— leigh ann caldwell /, NBC News, "Congress sounds bipartisan alarm as Trump deals on ZTE," 26 May 2018
The crash bus was left lying on its side on the guardrail of Interstate 80 in Mount Olive.

— elizabeth llorente, Fox News, "Driver of fatal New Jersey school bus crash had history of speeding tickets, license suspensions," 22 May 2018
The crash involves a dump truck that struck a guardrail about 6:15 a.m. The driver then exited the truck and died, FHP spokeswoman Lt.

— stephen hudak, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Traffic: Osceola dump-truck crash on Interstate 4 is fatal," 21 May 2018
Neither the pole nor the curve area were protected by guardrails.

— shelby webb, Houston Chronicle, "Woman killed after slamming into pole on Grand Parkway feeder road," 19 May 2018
The crash left the bus lying on its side on the guardrail of Interstate 80 in Mount Olive, its undercarriage and front end sheared off and its steering wheel exposed.

— david porter, BostonGlobe.com, "N.J. school bus collides with truck, killing teacher and student," 17 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'guardrail.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of guardrail

1860

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

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guardrail Synonyms

Synonyms

balustrade, banister (also bannister), rail, railing;

Related Words

handrail;

taffrail;

fender;

GUARDRAIL Defined for English Language Learners

guardrail

noun

Definition of guardrail for English Language Learners

: a strong metal bar along the side of a road that prevents vehicles from driving off the road
: a strong bar or fence that prevents people from falling off a deck, bridge, etc.