A railway is a route between two places along which trains travel on steel rails.
[mainly British]
The road ran beside a railway.
...a disused railway line.
regional note: in AM, usually use railroad
2. countable noun
A railway is a company or organization that operates railway routes.
[British]
...the state-owned French railway.
...the privatisation of the railways.
regional note: in AM, use railroad
3. countable noun
A railway is the system and network of tracks that trains travel on.
[mainly US]
railway in British English
(ˈreɪlˌweɪ) or US railroad
noun
1.
a permanent track composed of a line of parallel metal rails fixed to sleepers, for transport of passengers and goods in trains
2.
any track on which the wheels of a vehicle may run
a cable railway
3.
the entire equipment, rolling stock, buildings, property, and system of tracks used in such a transport system
4.
the organization responsible for operating a railway network
5. (modifier)
of, relating to, or used on a railway or railways
a railway engine
a railway strike
railway in American English
(ˈreɪlˌweɪ)
noun
1.
any track with rails for guiding wheels; specif., a road laid with parallel steel rails along which run passenger cars that are lighter than railroad cars
2.
railroad
COBUILD Collocations
railway
miniature railway
underground railway
Examples of 'railway' in a sentence
railway
They really put our railway network to shame.
The Sun (2016)
Heavy snow blocked roads and railways and brought down telegraph lines in many areas.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
It claimed the scheme could jeopardise access to track works on the local branch railway line.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Some people were beginning to wonder who was in charge and for whose benefit the railway was being run.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Thanks to privatisation, the railways are booming.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
There is a danger we might have said this before, but what a way to run a railway.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
The country's creaking railway system carries 20million people a day.
The Sun (2016)
By the middle of the century 90 per cent of railways were running under London time.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
These people all know that running the railway is actually really difficult.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
Somewhere where a new railway network would take you right into the stadium.
The Sun (2007)
My chest was seizing up as we sank down via the cable railway.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Its furniture is made from teak reclaimed from old railway tracks.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
She said the railway company had not told them what was happening.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
It was obvious that the railway system would be useless without a common gauge.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
The privatisation of the railways led to a similar leap in demand for interim managers.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
Next stop was a cobbled road under a railway bridge.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
To divide a city of four million and its complex web of railway lines?
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
But we definitely know how to run a railway.
The Sun (2012)
Our railway network is either overcrowded or else simply neglected.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
The number of passenger journeys taken by train has more than doubled since privatisation of the railways.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
Much of the planned route is drawn along existing roads and railway lines.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
Others said the railway line will destroy the woodland.
The Sun (2012)
But it was visible only from the railway line that runs alongside the farm.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
An upgrade of the railway network is also being considered to keep people off the road.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
We all feel the pressure that the railway system is not providing the quality of service people want.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
They had pointed out that the disused railway yard chosen as the scene of the party was too small.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
He got nine years plus two more after admitting his part in a plot to steal railway copper cable.
The Sun (2014)
It would be gone by first light... along with all the railway cables.
The Sun (2015)
He then turned his attention to a subject largely ignored: the history of railway track.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
Rather, it was built by a railway company to convey trains to connect with the river ferries.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
It was the beginning of the motor revolution, which matched in importance the earlier railway revolution in transport.
Grenville, J. A. S. The Collins History of the World in the 20th Century (1994)
Word lists with
railway
America
In other languages
railway
British English: railway /ˈreɪlˌweɪ/ NOUN
A railway is a route between two places along which trains travel on steel rails.
American English: railroad
Arabic: سّكَةٌ حَدِيدِيَّة
Brazilian Portuguese: ferrovia
Chinese: 铁道
Croatian: željeznica
Czech: železnice
Danish: jernbane
Dutch: spoorweg
European Spanish: ferrocarril
Finnish: rautatie
French: chemin de fer
German: Gleis
Greek: σιδηρόδρομος
Italian: ferrovia
Japanese: 鉄道
Korean: 철도
Norwegian: jernbane
Polish: kolej
European Portuguese: caminho-de-ferro
Romanian: cale ferată
Russian: железная дорога
Latin American Spanish: ferrocarril
Swedish: järnväg
Thai: รางรถไฟ
Turkish: demiryolu
Ukrainian: залізниця
Vietnamese: đường sắt
All related terms of 'railway'
cog railway
a railway for a very steep grade with traction supplied by a central cogged rail that meshes with a cogwheel on the engine
cable railway
a railway on which individual cars are drawn along by a strong cable or metal chain operated by a stationary motor
light railway
a transport system using small trains or trams , often serving parts of a large metropolitan area
model railway
a model of a small-scale railway system, often with toy moving trains
rack railway
a steep mountain railway having a middle rail fitted with a rack that engages a pinion on the locomotive to provide traction
railway guide
a publication containing routes and timetables for train journeys
railway line
a route between two points on a railway
railway track
British → another name for railway line (sense 2 )
railway yard
an area having a network of railway tracks and sidings , used for storing rolling stock, making up trains, etc
aerial railway
a system of railway cars that move on cables
marine railway
→ another term for slipway (sense 2 )
railway bridge
a bridge built to carry a railway over a road , river, etc
railway engine
a self-propelled engine used for drawing or pushing trains along railway tracks ; locomotive
railway journey
a journey made by railway train
railway network
a system of intersecting rail routes
railway police
the branch of the police force specializing in maintaining law and order and detecting crime on the railways
railway porter
a person employed to carry luggage , parcels , supplies, etc at a railway station
railway station
a place on a railway line where trains stop to pick up or let off passengers or goods, esp one with ancillary services
railway worker
a male worker on a railway , esp one other than a driver
scenic railway
a miniature railway used for amusement in a park , zoo , etc
elevated railway
an urban railway track built on supports above a road
funicular railway
a railway up the side of a mountain, consisting of a counterbalanced car sat either end of a cable passing round a driving wheel at the summit
inclined railway
a cable railway used on particularly steep inclines unsuitable for normal adhesion locomotives
miniature railway
A railway is a route between two places along which trains travel on steel rails .
railway carriage
a railway coach for passengers
railway crossing
a point at which a railway and a road cross , esp one with barriers that close the road when a train is scheduled to pass
railway timetable
a list of railway journeys arranged according to the time when they begin and end
underground railway
A railway is a route between two places along which trains travel on steel rails .
Trans-Siberian Railway
a railway in S Russia, extending from Moscow to Vladivostok on the Pacific : constructed between 1891 and 1916, making possible the settlement and industrialization of sparsely inhabited regions. Length: 9335 km (5800 miles)
railroad line
a route between two points on a railway
rack and pinion railway
a steep mountain railway having a middle rail fitted with a rack that engages a pinion on the locomotive to provide traction
railroad track
US → another name for railway track ⇒ ⇒ alongside the railroad track ⇒ ⇒ railroad tracks that led to nowhere
funicular
A funicular or a funicular railway is a type of railway which goes up a very steep hill or mountain. A machine at the top of the slope pulls the carriage up the rails by a steel rope.