road

In the lightness of my heart I sang catches of songs as my horse gayly bore me along the well-remembered road.

1852, Mrs M.A. Thompson, “The Tutor's Daughter”, in Graham's American Monthly Magazine of Literature, Art, and Fashion, page 266:

I stumbled along through the young pines and huckleberry bushes. Pretty soon I struck into a sort of path that, I cal'lated, might lead to the road I was hunting for.

1913, Joseph C[rosby] Lincoln, chapter I, in Mr. Pratt’s Patients, New York, N.Y., London: D[aniel] Appleton and Company, →OCLC:

And the road doesn't end / It's a long, long road and we follow it again and again / And the road don't pretend

2018, Bill Wurtz (lyrics and music), “Long Long Long Journey”:

A way used for travelling between places, originally one wide enough to allow foot passengers and horses to travel, now (US) usually one surfaced with asphalt or concrete and designed to accommodate many vehicles travelling in both directions. In the UK both senses are heard: a country road is the same as a country lane.

We travelled to the seaside by road.

(uncountable) Roads in general as a means of travel, especially by motor vehicle.

He stirred up his hair with his sprightliest expression, glanced at the little figure again, said ‘Good evening, ma ‘am; don’t come down, Mrs Affery, I know the road to the door,’ and steamed out.

1855 December – 1857 June, Charles Dickens, Little Dorrit, London: Bradbury and Evans, […], published 1857, →OCLC:

Hetty and Mrs. Piper watched them with a lynx-eyed understanding and before the ancient was well upon his road his way was blocked by Hetty.

1930, Norman Lindsay, Redheap, Sydney, N.S.W.: Ure Smith, published 1965, →OCLC, page 131:

the road to happiness; the road to success.

Where, then, is the road to peace?

1964, Ronald Reagan, A Time for Choosing:

Hodgson may actually feel England could have scored even more but this was the perfect first step on the road to Rio in 2014 and the ideal platform for the second qualifier against Ukraine at Wembley on Tuesday.

2012 September 7, Phil McNulty, “Moldova 0-5 England”, in BBC Sport:

(figuratively) A path chosen, as in life or career.

The new depot, on which work started in May, 1956, has three reception roads leading to 13 sidings capable of taking 25 trains, a 450 ft.-long car examination shed with nine roads, a lifting shop with two roads and three permanent way sidings.

1959 November, “L.T. and E.R. developments in East London”, in Trains Illustrated, page 527:

(US, rail transport) A railway or (UK, rail transport) a single railway track.

(obsolete) The act of riding on horseback.

(obsolete) A hostile ride against a particular area; a raid.

Antonio: Sweet lady, you have given me life and living; / For here I read for certain that my ships / Are safely come to road.

c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene i]:

There delivering their fraught, they went to Scandaroone; rather to view what ships was in the Roade, than any thing else […].

1630, John Smith, True Travels, Kupperman, published 1988, page 38:

(nautical, usually in the plural) A partly sheltered area of water near a shore in which vessels may ride at anchor; a roadstead.

At last, with easy roads, he came to Leicester; / Lodg'd in the abbey, where the reverend abbot, / With all his convent, honourably receiv'd him; […]

1613 (date written), William Shakespeare, [John Fletcher], “The Famous History of the Life of King Henry the Eight”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene ii]:

(obsolete) A journey, or stage of a journey.

(cricket) A hard, flat pitch, typically favourable for batters.

his driveway doesn't go all the way to the road

the grass is always greener on the other side of the road

the road to hell is paved with good intentions

what happens on the road stays on the road

apehũ (paved with asphalt, lit. "black road")

From Middle English rode, rade (“ride, journey”), from Old English rād (“riding, hostile incursion”), from Proto-West Germanic *raidu, from Proto-Germanic *raidō (“a ride”), from Proto-Indo-European *reydʰ- (“to ride”). Doublet of raid, acquired from Scots. Cognates include West Frisian reed (paved trail/road, driveway).
The current primary meaning of "street, way for traveling" originated relatively late—Shakespeare seemed to expect his audiences to find it unfamiliar—and probably arose through reinterpretation of roadway "a way for riding on" as saying "way" twice, in other words as a tautological compound.


road

(US, Canada, sports, chiefly attributive) At the venue of the opposing team or competitor; on the road.

road tires

road groupset

(cycling) Of or pertaining to a road bike.

away

at the venue of the opposing team or competitor


road

road (indefinite positive)
roat (indefinite neuter positive singular)
roade (indefinite plural positive)
roade (archaic indefinite masculine plural positive)
roade (definite masculine positive singular)
roade (definite positive)