road rage

noun

: a motorist's uncontrolled anger that is usually triggered by an action of another motorist and that is expressed in aggressive or violent behavior

From punching cars to shooting drivers, road rage … takes many forms.

—Natalie La Roche Pietri

Drivers reported experiencing road rage most frequently on city streets (29.18%), on freeways or highways (26.59%) and in parking lots (14.9%).

—Ashlee Tilford

—often used before another noun

a road rage incident

An apparent road rage shooting left one person wounded …

—Anna Spoerre

road rager

ˈrōd-ˌrā-jər 

noun

plural road ragers

Other drivers may have similar feelings or thoughts, but only the road rager responds with dangerous behavior: tailgating, pulling right in front of you at high speeds, running you off the road, refusing to let you into traffic, and so on.

—Michael Karson

Examples of road rage in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Inspired by Lee’s personal experience with a road rage incident, Season 1 starred Steven Yeun and Ali Wong as two strangers whose lives collide in a strange way after they’re involved in a traffic incident of their own. —Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 8 Apr. 2026

Sargent-Zuniga denied engaging in any form of road rage, racing or reckless driving, according to the affidavit. —Lauren Penington, Denver Post, 7 Apr. 2026

Police learned that a 30-year-old man pulled up and shot at their sedan after a road rage incident. —Annasofia Scheve, San Antonio Express-News, 7 Apr. 2026

And a firefighter who was charged with brutally attacking a woman in a road rage incident in 2019, then got probation and now faces two more felony charges for allegedly urinating on a female co-worker’s belongings. —Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, 6 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1988, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for road rage

• assuage
• backstage
• bocage
• downstage
• engage
• enrage
• leafage
• messuage
• offstage
• onstage
• outrage
• pelage