traffic signal
8
1.4
- noun
- /ˈtræfɪk ˈsɪɡnəl/
:
semáforo
- A reckless driver ignored a traffic signal in front of her school.
Then then it came to a traffic signal where there was the on the classical vertical signal with, you know, red, yellow and and green.
- Then then it came to a traffic signal where there was the on the classical vertical signal with, you know, red, yellow and and green.
Examples
-
As Sweeney approached a corner, the traffic signal changed and the Walk sign lit.
Fiction book (1999) -
We have replaced all 147 traffic signals with LED lights.
Blog text (6) -
When and where was the first electric traffic signal installed?
Blog text (28) -
When the traffic signal switched to green, everything started moving at once.
Fiction book (2000) -
There are numerous traffic signals throughout the town and county that are not functioning.
Blog text (18) -
The world got its first electric traffic signal in 1914 in Cleveland.
Blog text (28) -
Who knew a working traffic signal could be such a wondrous, heartwarming sign?
Blog text (6) -
A reckless driver ignored a traffic signal in front of her school.
-
We came to a red traffic signal and waited at the curb.
-
As Sweeney approached a corner, the traffic signal changed and the Walk sign lit.
Synonyms
28
1.0
A device with red, yellow and green lights that controls cars and people at street intersections
18
1.6
A set of red, yellow and green lights that control traffic at intersections
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound combines 'traffic' (flow of vehicles/people) with 'signal' (an indicator/device conveying information), so a learner who knows both words can infer it is a signal used for controlling traffic—e.g. colored lights at intersections. This noun–noun composition is cross-linguistically common and follows straightforward compositional rules, making the meaning easily recoverable for a B1 learner.
Etymology
The noun traffic signal comes from early times when people used lights or police officers' signals to tell drivers and pedestrians when to 'stop' and 'go'. Because it is a signal for traffic, the name now means the lights that control the flow of vehicles and people at crossings.