Dictionary
Find
in
Dictionary
Thesaurus
Translations

Click to move up the list of words
railbird
railbus
railcar
railcard
railhead
railing
raillery
raillink
railroad
railroad flat
railroading
railslide
railtour
Railtrack
railway
raiment
rain
Click to move down the list of words
Print Preview
See pronunciation key
Search for "railroad" in all of MSN Encarta
E-mail this entry
Blog about this entry on MSN Spaces
Download the MSN Encarta Right-Click Dictionary

railroad

rail·road [ ráyl rd ]


noun  (plural rail·roads)
Definition:
 
1. track made of rails: a track consisting of steel rails usually fastened to wood or concrete ties, designed to carry a locomotive and its cars or anything similar

2. rail system: a network of railroad lines, together with the trains, buildings, equipment, and staff needed to operate a rail transport system, or the organization or company that owns or runs this



verb  (past and past participle rail·road·ed, present participle rail·road·ing, 3rd person present singular rail·roads)
Definition:
 
1. transitive verb force something through quickly without discussion: to push something through a legislature, committee, or other decision-making body quickly so that there is not enough time for objections to be considered ( informal )

2. transitive verb force somebody to act hastily: to force a person or group to make a decision or take action quickly, without time for consideration or discussion ( informal )

3. transitive verb convict somebody too quickly: to convict somebody on the basis of flimsy or false evidence ( informal )

4. transitive verb U.S. rail ship something by rail: to transport or send something by rail

5. intransitive verb U.S. be railroad worker: to work on a railroad
She used to railroad for the Southern Pacific.

[Mid-18th century. <rail1]
Advertisement

Also on Encarta
Englishtown: Learn English online
Our Partners
Also on MSN
Encarta Message Boards (© Rubberball/Jupiterimages)
Shopping
© 2009 Microsoft