elevated train

IPA/ˌel.ɪ.veɪ.tɪd ˈtreɪn/
IPA/ˌel.ə.veɪ.t̬ɪd ˈtreɪn/

elevated train — noun

1. a city train for passengers that travels along tracks built well above street le

1.nounB2
Definition

a city train for passengers that travels along tracks built well above street level, usually resting on tall metal supports

Example

Christopher took the elevated train downtown to watch the baseball game.

collocation: take the elevated train [somewhere]

From her window, Roya watched the elevated train rumble past every morning.

Common collocations
  • elevated train line
  • elevated train platform
  • elevated train station
Synonyms
  • elevated railway

    more common in British English; stresses the track line rather than the vehicle

  • el

    informal American short form, especially in Chicago

  • overhead railway

    older British term for the same above-street idea

Antonyms
  • subway

    runs below ground rather than above the streets

  • underground

    British word for a city train that runs below ground

Usage Note

Usually takes 'the', and in American cities is often shortened to 'the el' (or Chicago's 'the L') when speakers mean the whole city system rather than one vehicle.

Common Mistakes

We took the elevated train underground to the airport.
We took the subway underground to the airport.
an elevated train runs above the streets, never below them.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All four are forms of urban rail, but they differ in where and how they run. An 'elevated train' is carried on tracks built high above the streets, so passengers look down on traffic and rooftops. A 'subway' is the opposite: it runs through tunnels below ground, which keeps the streets clear but hides the view. A 'monorail' rides on a single raised beam rather than two ordinary rails, and is often seen at airports or theme parks. A 'tram' stays at street level, sharing the road with cars and pedestrians, and usually stops more often. When you want to stress that a city train is lifted above the road on supports, 'elevated train' is the precise choice; for the underground version, say 'subway'.

elevated train ↗subway ↗monorail ↗tram ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • elevated train system
  • elevated train track

Phrases

  • take the elevated train
  • ride the elevated train

Prepositions

  • on the elevated train
  • by elevated train

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

The phrase joins two old borrowings. 'Elevated' comes from Latin 'elevare', 'to lift up' (from 'levare', to raise), and reached English in the late Middle Ages. 'Train' comes through Old French from Latin 'trahere', 'to pull', first meaning a line of things drawn along behind. The compound 'elevated train' is much newer: it appeared in the late 19th century to name the raised city railways then being built in places like New York and Chicago, where the line was lifted onto supports to clear the busy streets below.