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Glite Dictionary
🛣️ A stone road 🚧 To surface a road
to macadam

to macadam

9.9
To cover a road with layers of small broken stones pressed together
  • verb
  • /məˈkædəm/
  • Archaic
translation icon : pavimentar
  • The old road was completely macadamed last year to improve its durability.

Examples

  • Workers spent the week macadaming the approach to the bridge before winter set in.

  • After the plan was approved, the city council decided to macadam the main highway.

  • The workers macadam the new road last week.

  • We should macadam this path to make it smoother.

  • The workers will macadam the new section of road to ensure a smooth drive.

  • After the storm damage, the crew needed to macadam the road again to make it safe for cars.

  • They decided to macadam the driveway with small stones for better drainage.

Synonyms

to macadamize
vsto macadam
  • Archaic
9.9

To cover a road with small broken stones and sometimes tar so it becomes hard

focuses on compacting broken stone with a binder rather than process steps
to tarmac
vsto macadam
  • UK
6.6

To cover a road or path with tar and small stones to make it smooth

uses broken stone compacted with any binder rather than only tar
to metal
vsto macadam
  • Archaic
8.4

To cover a road with broken stones so vehicles can pass

specifies compacted broken stone with a binder rather than any hard surfacing

How Paved

to pave
61 2.8
to tarmac
  • UK
6.6
to macadam
  • Archaic
9.9
to gravel
1 4.7

Surface Forms

macadam infinitive
macadamized past
macadamized past participle
macadaming present participle
macadams third person singular

Etymology

Macadam as a verb comes from the same road builder McAdam, and it means to cover a road with those packed small stones. So to macadam a road is to make its 'pavement' using that method.