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MUSCOVITE Posted 14 years ago
Vocabulary

'ramp' vs 'slip road'

Hi,Both words mean exactly the same thing (= a road for driving into or off a main road)? According to my longman, the former is used in AmEng, the latter in BrEng. So far so good .... but I wonder if there are any "subtle differences" between the two?Any ramp, as its name implies, should have a certain slope (ramp = slope?).On the other hand, the name of its British counterpart doesn't seem to imply that such road should have a certain 'gradient'? Or maybe the above mentioned difference only exists in my imagination ;-) ?mus-te
  

Top answer

You're overthinking this. According to my L ongman, the former is used in AmEng, the latter in BrEng. That's all there is to it.

— Rover_KE

  • You're overthinking this.
  • According to my L ongman, the former is used in AmEng, the latter in BrEng.
  • That's all there is to it.
  • Rover
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11 Answers
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You're overthinking this.

According to my Longman, the former is used in AmEng, the latter in BrEng.
That's all there is to it.

Rover
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OK. On a different grammar point if I may....(1) I understand the names of dictionaries (Longman, Webster, etc.) must always be capitalized? Thanks for the correction.(2) And what about such words as 'hoover' and 'kalashnikov'? Shall I capitalize them as well? thank you in advance
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Certain words, which started life as capitalised names of commercial products, become assimilated into the language as common nouns or verbs through popular usage over many years.

The words 'hoover', 'biro', 'band aid', 'selloptape' and 'internet' spring to mind.

I wouldn't include 'Kalashnikov' in the above category, as it is not a product used in the daily lives of most people.
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Understood. Thanks!
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They are the same thing In some ways. Ramp implies an incline, yes. This is a feature of US roads, which mostly have overpasses and underpasses. In the US, frontage roads are also slip roads, and have no slope change.
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MUSCOVITE'ramp' vs 'slip road'
I've never heard the term 'slip road'.

Note that in American English we use the terms on-ramp and off-ramp for the short roads that lead onto or away from a freeway. You accelerate on the on-ramps and decelerate on the off-ramps, of course. It makes no difference whether they slope up or down or don't slope at all.
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Hi

Just as a UK footnote. The point at which you join or leave a motorway is the slip road - that's how we would say it

... and I'd expect a ramp to have a slope. The European origin is from hill climbing so, if you're not going up or down, that's not a ramp

Dave
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dave_anonif you're not going up or down, that's not a ramp
On-ramps and off-ramps (AmE) need not have any slope. They can be perfectly flat. Yet they are ramps.

You might consider the idiom "to ramp up your speed" if you wish to reconcile the discomfort you feel about flat ramps.

CJ
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Hi

OK, I won't argue unduly

- The slip road at junction 34 is a flat ramp

That sounds a little strange to me. If it's flat it's not a ramp!

But I respect your usage

Dave
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dave_anonOK, I won't argue unduly
You already have by even bringing it up. I explained the usage in American English, and you seem to be saying it can't be correct. It is irrelevant how strange it sounds to you. Consider that 'slip road' sounds strange to American speakers and no one posted to say how wrong that must be, and how if it's a slip road it must
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