road

noun

ˈrōd How to pronounce road (audio)
Definition of roadnext
1
as in highway
a passage cleared for public vehicular travel I think we should take one of the less congested roads

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in railroad
a roadway overlaid with parallel steel rails over which trains travel the railway companies are continually repairing their roads

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of road When a really good team loses on the road to another really good team, THAT is what sports is supposed to look like. — Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 8 Nov. 2026 When a work zone is already narrow, twisty and lacks a shoulder, blocking one of the lanes can make for even worse delays than on a cleaner piece of road. — Doug Turnbull, AJC.com, 8 Nov. 2026 The group advised cyclists to wear helmets, watch for road hazards and, if approached by media, direct reporters to organizers. — Megan Cartwright, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Nov. 2026 Reaching the 1-yard line in the final minute, with time for multiple snaps, the Chiefs threw an incomplete pass and handed off for no gain in a 28-24 road loss. — Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 8 Nov. 2026 See All Example Sentences for road
Recent Examples of Synonyms for road
  1. highway
  2. railroad
  3. street
  4. railway
  5. thoroughfare
  6. freeway
  7. route
  8. expressway
Noun
  • Bundy was stopped by the highway patrol in Salt Lake City town in 1975 — leading to that 1976 conviction — and his vehicle was seized.
    — Brenna Ehrlich, Rolling Stone, 2 Nov. 2026
  • The Utah Navajo Health System posted several active highway closures, with detours.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of highway
Noun
  • Both work at a plant that manufactures trackside buildings for railroads.
    — Marc Levy, Los Angeles Times, 2 Nov. 2026
  • After two years leading the county party, French resigned in November 2025 to run for railroad commissioner.
    — Rachel Royster, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of railroad
Noun
  • Wandering the cobbled streets here feels like a wonderfully indulgent way to pass the time.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Nov. 2026
  • Greenfield resident Donald William Breeden was arrested and booked into Monterey County Jail on two counts of murder with criminal street gang enhancements, according to the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office.
    — Iris Kwok, Los Angeles Times, 7 Nov. 2026
Definition of street
Noun
  • Train derailments and crashes are common in Egypt, where the railway system has a history of mismanagement and poor maintenance.
    — Mohamed Saleh, Los Angeles Times, 8 Nov. 2026
  • The Egyptian railway system, the oldest in Africa and the Middle East, has a long history of deadly accidents.
    — Mostafa Salem, CNN Money, 8 Nov. 2026
Definition of railway
Noun
  • The emerald green bridge is a major thoroughfare connecting San Pedro to Terminal Island, home to both the Port of Los Angeles and the Port of Long Beach.
    — Karen Garcia, Los Angeles Times, 6 Nov. 2026
  • During the protests, also known as Occupy Central, demonstrators occupied major thoroughfares for 79 days in an ultimately unsuccessful push for direct election for the city’s leader.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 5 Nov. 2026
Definition of thoroughfare
Noun
  • Fortunately for the script, other British and Hessian reënactors had arrived via freeway and the incredibly vast Orchard Beach parking lot.
    — Ian Frazier, New Yorker, 2 Nov. 2026
  • But for what practical purpose do these features really serve, except for quickly accelerating onto a freeway?
    — Doug Turnbull, AJC.com, 1 Nov. 2026
Definition of freeway
Noun
  • The project remains under development, and no final route has been selected.
    — Dean Fioresi, CBS News, 11 Nov. 2026
  • Autonomous functions include one-touch takeoff, route planning, flight control, and landing assistance.
    — Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 11 Nov. 2026
Definition of route
Noun
  • Rice was driving a Lamborghini on an expressway and was clocked at 119 mph when the car hit the center median wall and caused four other cars to collide with each other.
    — Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 6 Nov. 2026
  • Along with the crossing to Vung Tau, Vingroup is working on a metro line connecting Can Gio to Ho Chi Minh City and roads that will link to the city’s expressway network.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of expressway

Phrases Containing road

Browse Nearby Words

roaches
road
roadblock
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Road.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/road. Accessed 14 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

31 Useful Rhetorical Devices

More Commonly Misspelled Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Longest Long Words List

The Words of the Week - Nov. 13

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
speech-bubble-untangle
Simplify The Convoluted Expression Quiz A quiz that’s as “uncomplicated as a round de...
See All