speedwayn.
1.
a. U.S. A track or road prepared for fast horse-driving. Now Historical.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > means of travel > route or way > way, path, or track > road > [noun] > for wheeled vehicles > for carriages > for fast driving
speedway1894
1894 Voice (N.Y.) 28 June New York has millions of dollars to spend upon its uptown parks and speedways.
1968 N.Y. City (Michelin Tire Corp.) 97 Trotters were in fashion, and they whipped through the Park to the speedways of Harlem.
b. A road on which motor vehicles may travel fast. Also gen., a motorway. Also figurative. Originally U.S.
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society > travel > means of travel > route or way > way, path, or track > road > [noun] > for wheeled vehicles > for fast motor traffic
speedway1903
motorway1906
superhighway1924
freeway1926
expresswayc1938
throughway1942
1903 N.Y. Times 16 Aug. 24/7 The numerous owners of rapid roadsters are devoting no inconsiderable portion of their Summer leisure to spirited brushes on the new speed~way.
1909 Manch. Guardian 18 Apr. 5/7 It should be explained that a speedway is simply what in England we should call a good macadamised road.
1909 World To-day (U.S.) July 698 An Automobile Speedway.
1919 Public Opinion 14 Nov. 471 (heading) The Speedway to Prosperity.
1927 Daily Tel. 15 Nov. 7/1 It will be a ‘speedway’ pure and simple, somewhat on the lines of the Italian Autostrada.
1928 Manch. Guardian Weekly 26 Oct. 328/2 The proposal to construct a motor-road speed-way between London and Brighton.
1946 J. W. Day Harvest Adventure xiv. 247 The traffic on that concrete speed-way, the Great West Road.
1976 J. van de Wetering Tumbleweed xx. 176 Their car..was joining the main traffic on the speedway.
2. Sport.
a. A racing track for motor vehicles. Also transferred.
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society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > racing or race > racing with vehicles > [noun] > place or track
velodrome1902
speedway1925
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > racing or race > racing with vehicles > motor racing > [noun] > course or track
autodrome1901
motordrome1908
speedway1925
strip1941
bullring1970
1925 Kansas City (Missouri) Star 31 May 1/1 Here is how they finished..in the thirteenth annual 500-mile motor classic on the Indianapolis speedway yesterday.
1968 D. Braithwaite Fairground Archit. 170/1 Speedway, a loose term which could refer either to an Ark—mounted with motor-cycles, or to a Monte Carlo Rally.
1979 Arizona Daily Star 1 Apr. c 12/2 USAC's 200-mile race at the Ontario Motor Speedway last weekend turned out better than a lot of people figured.
b. transferred. A sport in which motorcyclists race several laps about a short oval dirt track. Frequently attributive.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > racing or race > racing with vehicles > motorcycle racing or race > [noun]
scramble1926
speedway1930
motocross1951
scrambling1959
motorcross1960
moto1971
supercross1975
main1980
1930 S. Elder Romance of Speedway i. 9 Now that Speedway Racing has taken its place as one of our national pastimes.
1930 S. Elder Romance of Speedway ii. 27 In the first rank among Speedway riders.
1930 S. Elder Romance of Speedway ii. 33 Habitual frequenters of Speedway gatherings.
1937 D. W. Harding in Scrutiny VI. iii. 254 When we have passed..from the state of idly watching men..and have accepted the invitation to form part of an audience for jugglers, acrobats..or speedway riders..we may speak of display entertainment.
1950 Sport 22 Sept. 21/2 The Wembley crowds shot up and speedway in general benefited.
1961 K. Reisz Technique Film Editing (ed. 9) ii. 77 Bill Fox (Dirk Bogarde) had been an ace speedway rider before the war.
1977 Western Morning News 30 Aug. 12/3 Exeter gave themselves a tremendous boost in their challenge for the Gulf British League speedway title when they snatched a precious point from title rivals Reading.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1933; most recently modified version published online December 2019).
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n.1894