When we are in a traffic jam we often use the phrase ‘stuck in a traffic jam’ meaning we cannot move forward. Traffic jams are caused by very heavy traffic, as during rush hour, but also by accidents on the road, road work, and other impediments. Sometimes, they happen for seemingly no reason at all. When traffic moves like this we often describe it in one of several different ways such as:Įveryone hates creeping along in bumper to bumper traffic. When they do move, it’s just a few feet at a time.
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Traffic Jam MeaningĪ traffic jam is when all the vehicles on the road come to a standstill and then barely move forward at all. If you are forced to drive in rush hour traffic, you might get stuck in a traffic jam. If you are going on a trip to the beach, you might get up early to beat the traffic. So, we want to ‘beat the traffic.’ This means we want to leave and be on the road before rush hour begins and hopefully be at our destination before the traffic gets heavy. Most of us try to avoid driving in rush-hour traffic whenever we can. Since there are too many cars, the traffic tends to move very slowly. Where I live, rush hour is around 8 to 9 am and 5 to 6 pm. Therefore, on a daily basis, this is when there are the most vehicles on the road. They are very common and you may be able to use them today! Let’s go over them one by one.Īs stated above, rush hour is the period in the morning and evening when people are going to and from work. These idioms do tend to be used in groups of two or three, if not more. There we have six common traffic idioms and some other associated idioms. If you’re like me, you absolutely hate getting stuck in a traffic jam.Ĭreeping along for hours in bumper to bumper traffic is not how I like to spend my time. Lots of times, there are accidents and then the traffic is even slower because of rubberneckers. The traffic is very heavy and thus it tends to move very slowly. Therefore, a lot of traffic jams occur during rush hour. So, rush hour is the time in the morning and the evening when people are going to work and leaving work. This means that at those times there are more cars on the road. I wanted to leave early to avoid this heavy traffic.
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“I want to beat the traffic,” I said. I meant that since rush hour starts around 5 P.M. I was over at my friend’s house the other day and at around 4 o’clock I decided to leave. Want to see more videos from Idioms.Online? Subscribe to our YouTube channel!