Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web
Synonyms
Nearby Words

roadstead

 - 4 dictionary results

road⋅stead

  [rohd-sted]
Use roadstead in a Sentence
–noun Nautical.
road (def. 4).
Origin:
1325–75; ME radestede. See road, stead

road

  [rohd]
–noun
1. a long, narrow stretch with a smoothed or paved surface, made for traveling by motor vehicle, carriage, etc., between two or more points; street or highway.
2. a way or course: the road to peace.
3. a railroad.
4. Often, roads. Also called roadstead. Nautical. a partly sheltered area of water near a shore in which vessels may ride at anchor.
5. Mining. any tunnel in a mine used for hauling.
6. the road, the places, usually outside of New York City, at which theatrical companies on tour generally give performances.
—Idioms
7. burn up the road, Slang. to drive or move very fast.
8. down the road, in the future: Economists see higher interest rates down the road.
9. hit the road, Slang. to begin or resume traveling: We hit the road before sunrise.
10. one for the road, a final alcoholic drink taken just before departing from a party, tavern, or the like.
11. on the road,
a. traveling, esp. as a sales representative.
b. on tour, as a theatrical company: The musical ends its New York run next week to go on the road.
c. started; under way: We need funds to get the project on the road.
12. take to the road, to begin a journey or tour. Also, take the road.
Origin:
bef. 900; ME rode, earlier rade, OE rād a riding, journey on horseback, akin to rīdan to ride

Related forms:
roadless, adjective
road⋅less⋅ness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To roadstead
road·stead   (rōd'stěd')   
n.  A sheltered offshore anchorage area for ships.

[Variant of rodestead : rode2 + sted, place (variant of stead).]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

road 
O.E. rad "riding, hostile incursion," from P.Gmc. *ridanan, source of O.E. ridan (see ride). Also related to raid. In M.E., "a riding, a journey," sense of "open way for traveling between two places" is first recorded 1596. Modern spelling only established 18c. Roadblock is attested from 1940. Roadster "open two-seat automobile" is from 1908, earlier of light carriages (1892), originally "a ship lying near the shore" (1744), which is from the nautical sense of "narrow stretch of sheltered water" (c.1320, cf. Hampton Roads in Virginia). Road test is from 1906. Road hog is attested from 1891; road rage is from 1988; roadie "laborer employed by pop groups while on tour" first recorded 1969; road kill (n.) in the figurative sense is from 1992.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Search another word or see roadstead on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us:
Partner Sites:
Ask AnswersEviteExpediaHotelsHotwireLife123LiveDailyMy Way