Meaning & use
monorail
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
A railway system in which trains run on a single rail, often elevated above the ground.
Grammar: Countable: a monorail, several monorails.
Patterns
- take the monorail
- a monorail system
- by monorail
The city built a monorail to connect the airport with the city center.
We took the monorail to the theme park and avoided the traffic.
The monorail glided silently above the busy streets.
nouncountable
A single rail on which such a train runs.
Grammar: Countable: one monorail, two monorails.
Patterns
- on a monorail
The train runs on a concrete monorail supported by pillars.
Engineers inspected the monorail for cracks.
Word forms
| plural | monorails |
|---|
Common combinations
- elevated monorail
- The elevated monorail offers great views of the city.
- monorail system
- The new monorail system reduced travel time to the airport.
- ride the monorail
- Children love to ride the monorail at Disney World.
- monorail train
- The monorail train can carry up to 200 passengers.
Synonyms and how they differ
- railway
- A railway is a general term for a track system, usually with two rails; a monorail specifically uses one rail.
- metro
- A metro is an underground or urban train system, often with two rails; a monorail is typically elevated and single-railed.
Practice
What is a monorail?
Choose one answer.
A monorail is defined by having one rail; the other options describe different transport systems.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “monorail”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.