toll road

Meaning

1. 1nouncountable

   A road, usually a fast one, that drivers must pay a fee to use.

   Grammar: Often used with on: we drove on the toll road.

   Patterns

   • drive on a toll road
   • pay to use a toll road

   We took the toll road to save an hour, even though it cost eight dollars.

   The new toll road links the airport to the city center.

   Many drivers avoid the toll road and take the slower country route.

Word forms

Common combinations

take the toll road

If you are in a hurry, take the toll road.

pay a toll

You must pay a toll at the booth before the bridge.

build a toll road

The state plans to build a toll road across the valley.

avoid toll roads

My navigation app lets me avoid toll roads.

toll road fee

The toll road fee rises on holidays.

Synonyms and how they differ

turnpike

Turnpike is an American term, often used in place names, for a toll highway and is slightly old-fashioned elsewhere.

tollway

Tollway is a common American name for a major paid highway and is almost always used for big roads, unlike toll road which can be short.

pay road

Pay road is rare and informal, and toll road is the standard everyday phrase.

Opposites

Word family

toll noun

a fee charged for using a road or bridge

tollbooth noun

a stall where drivers pay

toll-free adjective

without a charge, as with some phone numbers

toll verb

to charge a fee; also to ring a bell slowly

Commonly confused: toll road or toll bridge?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “toll road”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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