overbridge

overbridge

See also: over bridge

English

Etymology

    From over- + bridge.

    Noun

    overbridge (plural overbridges)

    1. (British) A bridge that allows traffic to pass over a road, river, railway etc.
      Coordinate terms: overpass, flyover, underbridge, occupation bridge
      • 1951 May, “Track Layout at Euston”, in Railway Magazine, page 290:
        No major platform improvements have been possible in the past because the piers of an overbridge at the north end of the station prevented respacing of the tracks.
      • 1979 August, Michael Harris, “A line for all reasons: the North Yorkshire Moors Railway”, in Railway World, page 412:
        On the subject of permanent structures, the NYMR has Grosmont Tunnel (lined throughout), but only five overbridges, three of the last-named being the County Councils's [sic] reponsibility for repair.

    Usage notes

    Where a bridge takes one form of transport over another it is both an overbridge and an underbridge, depending on the reference level. For example, where a road passes above a railway, the bridge is an overbridge from the point of view of the railway and an underbridge from the point of view of the road.

    Verb

    overbridge (third-person singular simple present overbridges, present participle overbridging, simple past and past participle overbridged)

    1. (transitive) To form a bridge over; to overarch.