as in jams
a crowded mass (as of cars) that impedes or blocks movement
a bottleneck inevitably forms at the start of a construction zone when the highway narrows from three to two lanes
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Recent Examples of bottlenecks
Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 7 Nov. 2025
The new method, led by associate professor Gunvant Patil, dramatically reduces the time needed to regenerate plants and eliminates one of the biggest bottlenecks in biotechnology, tissue culture.
—Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 6 Nov. 2025
While the region’s homeless population faces many bottlenecks, the lack of detox beds is especially acute.
—Blake Nelson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Nov. 2025
Luigi Avantaggiato Today, curation and annotation are time-consuming processes, regarded as major bottlenecks to the rapid progress that the Earth BioGenome Project desperately needs to reach its 2035 goal.
—Glenn Zorpette, IEEE Spectrum, 4 Nov. 2025
Meanwhile, production bottlenecks, labor shortages, tighter government spending, and the lack of Western technology are increasingly causing strains in the economy, Prokopenko said.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2025
Grocery prices have been on the rise for most of the past five years, as supply chain bottlenecks, the war in Ukraine and excessive profit-taking here in America have put a strain on consumers’ wallets.
—Joe Murphy, NBC news, 24 Oct. 2025
Supply chain bottlenecks that have long constrained an expansion of electricity grids are showing signs of easing, but plenty of other mammoth challenges remain, an executive at a major power infrastructure firm told Semafor.
—Prashant Rao, semafor.com, 21 Oct. 2025
Indiana receives pups from non-Hoosier woodrats from these zoos, Bordenkecher said, and that will hopefully help the population avoid any genetic bottlenecks.
—Karl Schneider, IndyStar, 15 Oct. 2025
Noun
In total, 40 high-volume airports have seen a reduction in flights starting Friday morning across major metropolitan areas such as New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Dallas to prioritize air traffic safety and alleviate any bottlenecks from the labor concerns.
—Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 7 Nov. 2025
The new method, led by associate professor Gunvant Patil, dramatically reduces the time needed to regenerate plants and eliminates one of the biggest bottlenecks in biotechnology, tissue culture.
—Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 6 Nov. 2025
While the region’s homeless population faces many bottlenecks, the lack of detox beds is especially acute.
—Blake Nelson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Nov. 2025
Luigi Avantaggiato Today, curation and annotation are time-consuming processes, regarded as major bottlenecks to the rapid progress that the Earth BioGenome Project desperately needs to reach its 2035 goal.
—Glenn Zorpette, IEEE Spectrum, 4 Nov. 2025
Meanwhile, production bottlenecks, labor shortages, tighter government spending, and the lack of Western technology are increasingly causing strains in the economy, Prokopenko said.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2025
Grocery prices have been on the rise for most of the past five years, as supply chain bottlenecks, the war in Ukraine and excessive profit-taking here in America have put a strain on consumers’ wallets.
—Joe Murphy, NBC news, 24 Oct. 2025
Supply chain bottlenecks that have long constrained an expansion of electricity grids are showing signs of easing, but plenty of other mammoth challenges remain, an executive at a major power infrastructure firm told Semafor.
—Prashant Rao, semafor.com, 21 Oct. 2025
Indiana receives pups from non-Hoosier woodrats from these zoos, Bordenkecher said, and that will hopefully help the population avoid any genetic bottlenecks.
—Karl Schneider, IndyStar, 15 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bottlenecks
Noun
-
Examples include The Dutch Kettle of Hamptonville, which makes fruit jams, jellies and barbecue sauce.—
Chase Jordan
November 5,
Charlotte Observer,
5 Nov. 2025
-
The berries, which birds also love, can be eaten fresh or made into jams and jellies.—
Arricca Elin SanSone,
Southern Living,
2 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
Meanwhile, former Noiseworks and INXS frontman Jon Stevens snags a top 40 debut with his 11th solo album, Shimmer (Island/Universal).—
Lars Brandle,
Billboard,
17 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
The order now blocks a previous ruling by a Rhode Island judge that required the payments to be paid out by Friday night, NBC News notes.—
Deputy News Editor,
MSNBC Newsweek,
8 Nov. 2025
-
If the customer does not recognize the purchase, the bank blocks the transaction.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
The result has been a seemingly endless run of East Washington Street roadwork and traffic snarls from Alabama Street downtown to I-465.—
Ryan Murphy,
IndyStar,
25 Sep. 2025
-
There was talk of traffic snarls and strain on the power grid.—
Christopher Bonanos,
Curbed,
24 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The Martian atmosphere presents a major obstacle to safely and precisely landing on the surface, and also hinders any attempts to return contents (or people) back to Earth.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
6 Nov. 2025
-
Therefore, the siloed nature of retail, not a lack of skills or resources, will prove to be the most significant barrier that hinders progress.—
Raj Dhiman,
Sourcing Journal,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
That clogs the judicial system, wastes limited resources, and delays justice for those with legitimate grievances.—
Josh Hammer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
13 Oct. 2025
-
Both are highly absorptive, drawing out excess oil that clogs pores and contributes to breakouts.—
Christa Joanna Lee,
Allure,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The Calm team worked with the film’s sound designer, Lee Salevan, and composer Bryce Dessner, utilizing the film’s sound stems and score cues overlaid with sections of dialogue from Bentley and Greg Kwedar’s script.—
Dana Harris-Bridson,
IndieWire,
7 Nov. 2025
-
Truhn, who retired from the State Department in 2013, told the Herald that the ‘Ndrangheta’s success in the region stems in part from its ability to provide services that local governments cannot.—
Karen Wang,
Miami Herald,
7 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
Let go of whatever impedes your progress and growth.—
Georgia Nicols,
Denver Post,
22 Oct. 2025
-
If a mental image only impedes the human’s process of emulation, why should her mindedness make Celmins’s web less natural than the spider’s?—
Harmon Siegel,
Artforum,
1 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Bottlenecks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bottlenecks. Accessed 14 Nov. 2025.
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