Traffic Terms Pt. 1

The road is a dangerous place, and it comes with its own vocabulary. Try some of the phrases below:

Having the Right-of-way means that you have the right to go first.

To cut SO off means to move quickly into another lane, causing someone to slow down or stop.

A collision happens when something violently strikes something else.

Combined Example: I clearly had the right-of-way, but the car cut me off, nearly causing a collision.

To speed up simply means to go faster.

To ram into someone means to hit someone with intent.

Road rage is the feeling of extreme and uncontrollable anger when driving.

Combined Example: I was so angry that I sped up and rammed into him. I suppose you can call that road rage.

Heavy traffic is what you experience when the roads are extremely busy.

A traffic jam happens when everyone has stopped moving completely.

Combined example: Right now, there’s heavy traffic downtown, but we’re still moving. At least, it isn’t a traffic jam.

To double park means to park next to a car that is parked next to the sidewalk. You cannot do this for long periods of time because the car next to the sidewalk cannot pull out.

To back up means to move backwards in a car.

Combined example: We were double parked on the street, so I had to back up to let him out.