roads

noun

plural of road
1
as in highways
a passage cleared for public vehicular travel I think we should take one of the less congested roads

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in railroads
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 roads Most mountain roads should remain wet, but slick conditions are possible above 9,000 feet, especially after dark. — Joe Ruch, CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026 Critics also worried that an unplanned surge in housing could strain schools, roads and other infrastructure. — Jennifer Ludden, NPR, 13 Oct. 2026 By putting their eye-catching building on a spot along Route 66 and next to the path of the freeway, Fresco said, the people behind the Penguin were catering to motorists on roads rooted in two different eras. — Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2026 Another asset class Draho suggests is infrastructure — operators of roads, ports, bridges, and other hard assets. — Michelle Fox, CNBC, 13 Oct. 2026 Generally, on American roads, this is known as the driver’s seat. — Molly Fischer, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026 As the hundreds of thousands of people made their way down the narrow roads following the politician, a few rerouted into the industry event, still carrying big flags and with faces lit up with hope. — Rafa Sales Ross, Variety, 7 Oct. 2026 In some parts of the country, dangerous sinkholes are opening as aging, abandoned mine infrastructure erodes beneath communities, roads and public lands. — ABC News, 6 Oct. 2026 Rising sea levels with climate change are already inundating seaside roads, railways, and neighborhoods in California. — Justine Calma, The Verge, 6 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for roads
  1. highways
  2. railroads
  3. streets
  4. railways
  5. thoroughfares
  6. freeways
  7. routes
  8. expressways
Noun
  • In Chile in 2024, several hundred demonstrators burned tires and blocked coastal highways and railway tracks to protest the early closure of the fishing season, a move partly driven by overfishing tied to fishmeal.
    — Ian Urbina, Los Angeles Times, 9 Oct. 2026
  • The red dye also allows a road inspector to detect whether a trucker is evading taxes by using the fuel on highways.
    — Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of highways
Noun
  • In the past, economies ran on toll roads and railroads and pipelines that were physical.
    — Tim McDonnell, semafor.com, 5 Oct. 2026
  • American railroads were once the envy of the world and the engine of its industrial age.
    — Chris Isidore, CNN Money, 4 Oct. 2026
Definition of railroads
Noun
  • Police intervene at the scene using tear gas as students take to the streets to protest education conditions in Nancy, France, on October 7, 2026.
    — Jenni Reid, CNBC, 8 Oct. 2026
  • The construction bottleneck often extends traffic three or four blocks back on streets north of Front Street, like 9th, 11th and 13th, Atchley said.
    — Rachel Roberts, Idaho Statesman, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of streets
Noun
  • Russia’s constant attacks on factories, energy supply systems and the railways means that steel supply to the Ukrainian armed forces is also being degraded.
    — Kamal Ahmed, Fortune, 12 Oct. 2026
  • Recent Russian targets have included energy systems, key industries, railways, post offices, shopping centers, telecom networks, gas stations and grain exports.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 10 Oct. 2026
Definition of railways
Noun
  • The resulting long lineups snake out from working gas stations into the main thoroughfares of Moscow and other Russian cities.
    — Fred Weir, Christian Science Monitor, 9 Oct. 2026
  • Rancho Cordova was awarded more than $3 million in grants from a local agency for two road improvement projects on major city thoroughfares.
    — Camryn Dadey, Sacbee.com, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of thoroughfares
Noun
  • Opponents argue the proposal weakens environmental protections, stifles community input and could fast-track projects like data centers and freeways.
    — Lila Seidman, Los Angeles Times, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Suburbs stretch their undulating freeways into the grid, sucking out nutrients (and cutting through neighborhoods).
    — Daniel Immerwahr, New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of freeways
Noun
  • Its aim is to make rail practical for shipments that are often moved by trucks because conventional freight trains are less flexible on shorter routes.
    — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 11 Oct. 2026
  • But Huang regards it as just another attractor in the landscape — albeit a potentially catastrophic one — that can be all too easily accessed by many different routes.
    — Quanta Magazine, Quanta Magazine, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of routes
Noun
  • Bikes are not allowed to on freeways or expressways, and cyclists cannot pass through tolls unless the signs nearby dictate otherwise.
    — Sacbee.com, Sacbee.com, 31 Aug. 2026
  • The firm noted that major bridges like the Donghai Bridge and the Hangzhou Bay Bridge, as well as regional expressways, have reopened with standard speed limits restored.
    — Glenn Taylor, Footwear News, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of expressways

Browse Nearby Words

road rage
roads
roadstead
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Cite this Entry

“Roads.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/roads. Accessed 14 Oct. 2026.

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