Bumps

Question

Hi,first of all, are bumps IN or ON the road? I think both are ok...Second, what is a bump? My dictionaries say it's a part of a flat surface that is not even and it's raised above the rest of it. Does it have to be raised, or can it be a part that is lower than the rest? For example, do you call these bumps (even if they are not raised) or holes?Thanks

Marius Hancu · Accepted Answer

those are holes which produce a bump (shock)

Kooyeen · Answer

Ok, so they are "holes in the road". Thanks.

Marius Hancu · Answer

If there are holes in the road, spring has arrived
http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2007/042007/04162007/274202

Marius Hancu · Answer

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bump

Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): -s

1 a : a somewhat forceful, sudden, thudding, or jolting blow or impact : the action, the effect, or the noise of such a blow<the freight cars came together with a bump> <the bump of a chestnut falling -- Sylvia Stallings> <a bump that still hurts>: as (1) : a jolt experienced in an airplane in flight that is caused by local ascending or descending air currents (2) : a sudden shock or rock concussion sometimes accompanying rock subsidence in and around mines b : displacement to a lower position : DEMOTION<a bump to the bottom of his class>

2 : a relatively abrupt convexity or protuberance on a surface: as a : a swelling of tissue usually resulting from a bump <a week later she still had a bad bump on her forehead> b : a protuberance on the body: as (1) : BREAST<a young girl beginning to mature and show bumps> (2) : a cranial protuberance associated in phrenology with one of various faculties or personal qualities c (1) : a sudden rise in a road surface likely to jolt a passing vehicle (2) : any marked unevenness in a road surface likely to cause such a jolt <an old pavement now full of bumps and holes> d : a hill or other bulky rounded protuberance typically somewhat isolated geographically <the lone bump of hill that stands on the Jersey flats -- Horace Sutton>

3 a : an obstruction giving sudden check or pause <help people over the bumps of defeat -- L.C.May>; also : the abrupt perception of an obstruction or difficulty <Mrs. Miniver remembered with a bump, felt dismayed -- Jan Struther> b : OBSTACLE, DIFFICULTY<the bumps he encountered on his way to success>

Merriam-Webster unabridged dictionary
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Anonymous · Answer

Hi - A bump is any swelling or lump.....a hole is the opposite, often, holes in the road are called potholes.

CalifJim · Answer

do you call these bumps (even if they are not raised) or holes?

No. I don't call them bumps. The first is more like a depression or irregularity in the road. The second is a hole, more specifically a pothole. The third is a total disaster of multiple potholes!

The term you are looking for is almost certainly pothole. (Don't ask me for the derivation of that term!)

CJ

Kooyeen · Answer

CalifJim The term you are looking for is almost certainly pothole. (Don't ask me for the derivation of that term!)

Yeah! Thank you all.

Yankee · Answer

Hi Kooyeen

This is the sort of bump that you might say is 'on' a road:

speed bump

Kooyeen · Answer

Oh, yeah, those are speed bumps. I knew those were bumps, but thanks for the pic anyway. <img class='emoticon' style='Width:19px;Height:19px;' data-delaysrc='https://uat-englishforward-forums-backend.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/Emoticons/5.gif' src='https://uat-englishforward-forums-backend.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/Emoticons/5.gif' alt='Emotion: wink'/>

BarbaraPA · Answer

Does anyone want to talk about "frost heaves"?

Those bumps will send you airborne.

Bumps

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