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Glite Dictionary
underbridge

underbridge

5.4
A bridge that goes under a road or railway to let traffic pass below
  • noun
translation icon : paso inferior
  • We met under the underbridge to escape the rain while waiting for the bus.

Examples

  • The car drove slowly through the underbridge to avoid the low-hanging cables.

  • The cyclists enjoyed a smooth ride as they passed through the underbridge on their route.

  • "We shot out of the deep shadow of the underbridge and caught the current, which sent us swiftly toward our target.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • Lodged there in the tree, he began to feel himself to be a sodden wraith askulk in the night, some gnome or underbridge troll.

    Fiction book (1997)

Synonyms

underpass
vsunderbridge
12 2.7

A tunnel under a road or railway that people use to cross safely

is a support structure beneath another route rather than a tunnel

How High

viaduct
6 7.2
overpass
  • US
31 3.4
bridge
∞ 1.0
underbridge
5.4
culvert
  • Specialized
9 6.8

Surface Forms

underbridge singular
underbridges plural

Morphology

underbridge = bridge (transparent) = under + bridge

The meaning is directly compositional: 'under' (beneath) + 'bridge' (a structure), so learners can infer it denotes a bridge beneath another structure. [Postprocessing: moved 'under' from base_words to prefix]

Etymology

Underbridge is simply made from under ('below') and bridge ('a structure for crossing'), so imagine a bridge that sits under something else. That's why an underbridge is a bridge that lets traffic or people pass below another road or railway.