Meaning & use
interstate
Last updated
Meanings
adjectivebefore a noun
Involving, connecting, or happening between two or more states, especially of a country.
Grammar: Used before a noun: interstate commerce, an interstate highway. It is not usually used after a verb.
Patterns
- interstate commerce
- interstate highway
- interstate travel
- interstate dispute
The new law regulates interstate sales of alcohol.
Interstate travel increased during the holiday weekend.
The two governors met to discuss an interstate water-sharing agreement.
nouncountableAmerican
A wide, high-speed road in the U.S. system of highways that connects different states.
Grammar: Often used with 'the' and a number: take the interstate, Interstate 80. Plural: interstates.
Patterns
- on the interstate
- take the interstate
- Interstate 95
We drove most of the way on the interstate because it was faster.
The accident blocked two lanes of the interstate for hours.
From here, you can get on Interstate 40 and head west.
Word forms
| plural | interstates |
|---|
Common combinations
- interstate commerce
- The court ruled that the company's interstate commerce was subject to federal rules.
- interstate highway
- They built an interstate highway to link the two cities.
- interstate travel
- Many people do interstate travel during the summer holidays.
- on the interstate
- There was heavy traffic on the interstate this morning.
- interstate agreement
- The states signed an interstate agreement about sharing river water.
Synonyms and how they differ
- cross-border
- Cross-border is used for activities between countries or regions, not usually between states of the same country; interstate is specific to states.
- freeway
- Freeway is a general word for a wide road with no stopping, used in many countries; interstate is the U.S. network of such roads linking states.
- highway
- Highway is a general term for any main road; an interstate is a particular type of highway in the U.S. system.
Opposites
Word family
- intrastate adjective
- Within a single state.
- state noun
- A political region within a country.
Commonly confused: interstate or intrastate?
interstate vs intrastate
Intrastate means within one state, while interstate means between states. The prefixes inter- (between) and intra- (within) show the difference.
Practice
The trucking company mainly handles ___ deliveries, moving goods from Texas to Oklahoma and back.
Choose one answer.
The deliveries go between two states, so they are interstate. Intrastate would mean both pickup and delivery happen inside one state, and international would involve another country.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “interstate”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.