Meaning & use
freeway
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountableAmerican
A wide road with several lanes in each direction, built so traffic can travel fast without stopping for cross streets.
Grammar: Countable: say a freeway or the freeway; the plural is freeways.
Patterns
- on the freeway
- take the freeway
- the freeway to a place
We took the freeway instead of the slow coastal road.
Traffic on the freeway was backed up for miles after the accident.
There is a freeway exit about two miles ahead.
noununcountableAmerican
This type of road as a system or network in a region.
Grammar: Used without an or the plural when talking about the road system in general: travel by freeway.
Patterns
- by freeway
- the city's freeway system
Most commuters here travel by freeway.
The city plans to extend its freeway network north.
Word forms
| plural | freeways |
|---|
Common combinations
- on the freeway
- She listens to podcasts while she drives on the freeway.
- freeway traffic
- Freeway traffic is heaviest between seven and nine in the morning.
- freeway exit
- Take the next freeway exit and turn left.
- a busy freeway
- The bus broke down on a busy freeway.
- freeway system
- The new freeway system connects the airport to the coast.
Synonyms and how they differ
- highway
- Highway is a broader American word for any major public road; a freeway is specifically one with no cross traffic and no stopping.
- expressway
- Expressway is close in meaning and is used in some American regions, but it may still have a few intersections or tolls.
- motorway
- Motorway is the usual British word for the same kind of road, so use it in British contexts.
- interstate
- Interstate refers specifically to the numbered national freeway system in the US.
Word family
- free adjective
- Open and unobstructed, as in a road where traffic flows freely.
Commonly confused: freeway or motorway? freeway or highway?
freeway vs motorway
Motorway means the same kind of road but is the British term; using freeway in Britain sounds American.
freeway vs highway
A highway can have traffic lights and crossings, while a freeway by definition does not.
Practice
Which sentence uses freeway correctly in American English?
Choose one answer.
A freeway is a fast road for driving long distances without stopping, so option 0 fits. Option 2 is wrong because freeways have no traffic lights, and option 3 confuses the road with a vehicle.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “freeway”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.