traffic nightmare
3
4.4
- noun
- Informal
- The unexpected road closure caused a major traffic nightmare, trapping drivers in their cars for over an hour.
- cause a traffic nightmare
Examples
-
During rush hour, the highway turned into a traffic nightmare, leading to hours of delays for everyone.
-
A traffic nightmare of biblical proportions.
-
The newest attempt at art sounds dangerous and a traffic nightmare for most New Yorkers, with a liability to the city of New York.
Blog text (28) -
I know there are traffic engineers who dispute it, but I like grids that appear to me to let me avoid traffic nightmares on arterials.
Blog text (16) -
When the U.S. Department of Defense opened the BRAC 133 complex at Mark Center in August 2011, local residents and politicians alike predicted a traffic nightmare.
Blog text (18) -
The new construction site has created a traffic nightmare for commuters trying to reach downtown.
Synonyms
40
1.0
Many cars are stuck and move very slowly on a road
12
4.6
A complete traffic jam that stops vehicles moving in any direction
1
3.8
Very bad traffic that makes travel slow and hard
1
7.2
A traffic jam where cars block each other and cannot move
Very slow, annoying traffic that makes you late
Antonyms
How Severe
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly derivable from combining 'traffic' (vehicles/flow on roads) with 'nightmare' used metaphorically to mean a terrible or highly problematic experience. This metaphorical use of 'nightmare' to label bad situations is common and predictable, so a B1 learner who knows both words will likely understand 'traffic nightmare'.
Etymology
The phrase traffic nightmare joins traffic and nightmare to create a clear picture: imagine being stuck in endless lines of cars, horns and engines blaring, like a very bad dream. So, traffic nightmare means 'extremely heavy, frustrating traffic'.