dead-end street
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Noun:
- A street with only one way in or out: A road or street that is closed at one end, allowing no through passage for vehicles. Traffic can only enter and exit from the same end.
- A situation with no prospects for progress or development: Used figuratively to describe a job, relationship, or course of action that leads nowhere and offers no future advancement or positive outcome.
Usage Examples
- Noun (Literal):
- We live on a quiet dead-end street, so there's no through traffic.
- The delivery driver got lost because the map didn't show it was a dead-end street.
- Noun (Figurative):
- That factory job is a dead-end street; there's no chance for promotion.
- Staying in that argumentative relationship felt like a dead-end street.
Advanced Usage
- "to be/live on a dead-end street": To reside on a cul-de-sac.
- Their house is on a dead-end street, which makes it very safe for children to play.
- "to lead down a dead-end street": To guide someone toward a futile or unproductive path.
- His bad advice led me down a dead-end street, and I wasted a year on a failed project.
Variants and Related Words
- Cul-de-sac (n): A synonym, often implying a circular turnaround at the closed end. More common in British English and real estate terminology.
- The new housing development features many homes in quiet cul-de-sacs.
- Dead end (n): The closed terminus of a street; also used as a compound noun for the figurative meaning.
- We drove until we reached a dead end and had to turn around.
- His research hit a dead end when the funding was cut.
Synonyms
- Cul-de-sac: A street, lane, or passage closed at one end.
- Blind alley: A narrow street with no exit; often used for both literal and figurative meanings.
- No-through road: A descriptive phrase for a road with no exit.
Related Phrases
- Dead-end job (n): A compound phrase describing employment with no prospects for advancement, pay raises, or skill development.
- He quit his dead-end job to go back to school.
Noun
- a street with only one way in or out