as in road
a route that has many sharp turns for climbing a steep hill
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Recent Examples of switchback
The lawyers said others pursuing the Grand Teton Fastest Known Time also cut out switchbacks using the Old Climber’s Trail.
—
Nicole Blanchard, Idaho Statesman, 12 Nov. 2025
Within half a mile, my longtime friend Danny Sadleir and I were pushing our bikes up the rocky switchbacks leading away from the trail’s northern terminus at the Utah border to make our way south up Buckskin Mountain toward the Kaibab Plateau.
—Joan Meiners, AZCentral.com, 20 Oct. 2025
In June, it was announced that the festival’s colorful founder, Jean-Pierre Blanc, would step down amid a saga that unspooled with as many twists and turns as the switchback road leading up to the villa.
—Vogue, 20 Oct. 2025
After paying a three-euro (about $3) gate fee at the park’s entrance, visitors then face another 10-minute ride further into the pine and gorse-clad hills along a switchback road that reaches about 1,000 meters above sea level.
—Barry Neild, CNN Money, 23 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for switchback
Nicole Blanchard, Idaho Statesman, 12 Nov. 2025
Within half a mile, my longtime friend Danny Sadleir and I were pushing our bikes up the rocky switchbacks leading away from the trail’s northern terminus at the Utah border to make our way south up Buckskin Mountain toward the Kaibab Plateau.
—Joan Meiners, AZCentral.com, 20 Oct. 2025
In June, it was announced that the festival’s colorful founder, Jean-Pierre Blanc, would step down amid a saga that unspooled with as many twists and turns as the switchback road leading up to the villa.
—Vogue, 20 Oct. 2025
After paying a three-euro (about $3) gate fee at the park’s entrance, visitors then face another 10-minute ride further into the pine and gorse-clad hills along a switchback road that reaches about 1,000 meters above sea level.
—Barry Neild, CNN Money, 23 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for switchback
Recent Examples of Synonyms for switchback
Noun
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Roads and Railways The government has led the push for infrastructure capital expenditure through the roads and railways sectors, both of which are expected to receive higher allocations in the budget.—
Ashutosh Joshi,
Bloomberg,
28 Jan. 2026
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Under the watchful eye of sheriffs deputies who threatened to ticket anyone caught standing in the road, along with a small number of National Guard members, the protesters took turns screaming swears and warming up in nearby parked cars.—
Christopher Cann,
USA Today,
28 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Authorities said Richardson was driving 104 mph and dangerously passing other motorists on the highway.—
Jackson Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
30 Jan. 2026
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Interstates 55 and 22 remained closed in northern Mississippi as emergency crews used tow trucks and snowplows to clear the highways.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
30 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Several crashes have been reported across North Texas Wednesday morning, as roadways remain icy and hazardous following a winter storm that swept through the region this past weekend.—
Briauna Brown,
CBS News,
28 Jan. 2026
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No one should be on roadways unless absolutely necessary and violators could be subject to arrest.—
Cheryl Vari,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
27 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The unrest entered its 12th day with general strikes spreading across major commercial centers and street clashes intensifying, particularly in western Iran.—
Emma Bussey,
FOXNews.com,
9 Jan. 2026
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Similarly, drivers who routinely leave their vehicles on busy streets overnight are naturally more likely to have their cars damaged or stolen.—
Ethan M. Stone,
Miami Herald,
9 Jan. 2026
Noun
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One driver learned the hard way that even a freeway that's been plowed can still have icy, slick spots to cause out-of-control spins.—
J.D. Miles,
CBS News,
27 Jan. 2026
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International artists from Amsterdam, Nepal and Australia paint alongside locals, transforming concrete facades into an open-air gallery visible from the freeway.—
Audrey T. Williams,
Mercury News,
26 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Since then, TxDOT has continually sent fleets of trucks to plow main thoroughfares like Central Expressway in Richardson on Monday night and Highway 287 in Decatur earlier in the day.—
J.D. Miles,
CBS News,
27 Jan. 2026
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At night, De Quincey would wander up and down Oxford Street, a major East–West thoroughfare.—
Hari Kunzru,
Harpers Magazine,
27 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Beyond the Luddites, rioters destroyed threshing machines in 1830, Welsh protesters tore down turnpike tollgates in the 1840s.—
Craig S. Smith,
Forbes.com,
21 Jan. 2026
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Most of the construction happening right now is occurring on the highways, turnpikes, and interstates that get most residents through their daily commute.—
Josh Kelly,
Oklahoman,
15 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Homicide data from the Illinois State Police, which patrols the city’s expressways, also is not included here.—
Kori Rumore,
Chicago Tribune,
26 Jan. 2026
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Mareno’s motorcycle then spun across three lanes, striking an unoccupied 2017 Infinite Q50 stopped on the shoulder of the expressway, cops said.—
Colin Mixson,
New York Daily News,
16 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Switchback.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/switchback. Accessed 31 Jan. 2026.
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