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

Now the subject of investigations by three law enforcement agencies, Young has been accused of assault, threatening California Highway Patrol officers, brandishing a gun during a road rage incident and choking his estranged wife, according to court documents filed by prosecutors this month. —James Queally, Los Angeles Times, 25 Oct. 2024

Season 1 was a major hit due to Steven Yeun and Ali Wong's performances as Danny Cho and Amy Lau — two strangers who let a road rage incident spiral into an all-out revenge war. —Samantha Stutsman, People.com, 24 Oct. 2024

In Season 1, Yeun and Wong played Danny Cho and Amy Lau, two strangers in Los Angeles whose lives become entangled after a road rage incident. —Variety, NBC News, 24 Oct. 2024

It was famously inspired by a real-life road rage incident experienced by series creator Lee. —Jessica Wang, EW.com, 23 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1988, in the meaning defined above