slip road

IPA/ˈslɪp rəʊd/
IPA/ˈslɪp rəʊd/

slip road — noun

1. A short stretch of road built alongside a motorway or other fast main road. Driv

1.nounB1
Definition

A short stretch of road built alongside a motorway or other fast main road. Drivers use it to pick up speed before merging into moving traffic, or to slow down after leaving the main road for a smaller road or junction.

Example

Yuna used the slip road to accelerate before merging into motorway traffic.

used the slip road to accelerate before merging

Devika missed the slip road for the station and drove on to the next junction.

missed the slip road for [destination]

Common collocations
  • use the slip road
  • miss the slip road
  • block the slip road
  • the slip road merges into
  • slip road onto [motorway name]
  • join/leave via the slip road
Synonyms
  • ramp

    US English term for the same structure; also used in British English but mainly for wheelchair or loading ramps

  • access road

    broader meaning — any road that provides entry to a larger road, building site, or development, not specific to motorway merging

  • turn-off

    informal — refers generally to a place where you leave a main road, without specifying the short merging lane

Antonyms
  • motorway

    the main road itself, not the connector

Grammar Patterns

the slip road

a/the slip road + onto + [road name]

Usage Note

The term 'slip road' is standard in British English for both entrance and exit connectors at motorway junctions. The American English equivalent is 'ramp' (entrance ramp / exit ramp). In everyday UK driving contexts, a slip road is the short section where you adjust your speed before joining or after leaving the main carriageway.

Common Mistakes

I drove onto the slip road to leave the roundabout.
I drove onto the slip road to join the motorway.
A slip road connects to a motorway or main road, not to a roundabout.
I parked my car on the slip road.
I waited on the slip road before merging into traffic.
Slip roads are for moving traffic, not parking.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

'Slip road' is the standard British term for the short connecting lane that lets vehicles join or leave a motorway. In American English the same structure is called a 'ramp' — specifically an 'entrance ramp' for joining or an 'exit ramp' for leaving. (In Britain, 'ramp' usually means a sloping surface for wheelchairs or loading, not a road.) 'Access road' is broader: it can describe any road providing entry to a larger road network, a building site, or a housing development — it is not limited to motorway junctions. 'Turn-off' is an informal word for any place where you leave a main road, but it does not specify the short merging section. Example: 'We took the slip road onto the M6' (UK) and 'We took the entrance ramp onto I-95' (US) describe the same manoeuvre with regionally different vocabulary.

slip road ↗ramp ↗access roadturn-off ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • use the slip road
  • take the slip road
  • join via the slip road
  • leave via the slip road
  • the slip road leads to

Prepositions

Etymology

EnglishBritish English

'Slip road' is a British English compound. The word 'slip' here draws on the idea of a vehicle smoothly sliding sideways — 'slipping off' the main carriageway onto the connector. The term entered common use in the mid-20th century as the UK motorway network expanded. Its American equivalent, 'ramp' (short for 'entrance ramp' or 'exit ramp'), describes the same structure and dates from the same period of highway construction.