bumper-to-bumperadv.adj.
/ˌbʌmpətəˈbʌmpə/, U.S. /ˌbəmpərdəˈbəmpər/ Originally U.S.
A. adv.
Of two or more motor vehicles: with the bumpers very close together, esp. due to slow-moving or heavy traffic. Also figurative.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > transport > transport or conveyance in a vehicle > vehicular traffic > [adverb] > density of traffic
nose to taila1834
bumper-to-bumper1901
1901 Goshen (Indiana) Daily Democrat 21 Aug. If every lineal foot of track in this city was filled with cars [i.e. streetcars] placed bumper to bumper.
1938 ‘E. Queen’ Four of Hearts (1939) v. 75 Los Feliz Boulevard was jammed with cars crawling bumper to bumper.
1966 P. G. Wodehouse Plum Pie i. 32 All the other places..had been full of guys and dolls standing bumper to bumper.
2011 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 17 Feb. b16/1 Two cars drive bumper to bumper.
B. adj.
1. Of traffic: very close together; (hence) slow-moving or heavy. Also in extended use.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > means of travel > a conveyance > vehicle > powered vehicle > motor car > [adjective] > travelling close together
bumper-to-bumper1925
1925 N.Y. Times 16 Aug. viii. 2/1 There are three bumper-to-bumper processions that completely cover the red brick roadways of South Amboy, N.J., for hours.
1959 Manch. Guardian 18 May 1/1 A bumper-to-bumper traffic jam on roads.
1986 R. Carver Elephant (1988) 14 The place is bumper-to-bumper tourists all summer.
2013 C. Tsiolkas Barracuda (2014) 242 It is a week before Christmas and I can't speed or fly in the bumper-to-bumper traffic cluttering up Glenferrie Road.
2. From front bumper to rear bumper; of or relating to the whole of a motor vehicle.
ΚΠ
1926 N.Y. Times 25 July viii. 15/1 The bumper-to-bumper length of the average automobile is fourteen feet.
1932 Middletown (N.Y.) Times Herald 15 Oct. 12/6 (advt.) Why not let us give your auto a bumper to bumper lubrication job.
1983 Pop. Sci. Sept. 56/2 The cost of a bumper-to-bumper inspection should be only about $60.
2011 St. Petersburg (Florida) Times (Nexis) 22 Apr. 6 Tropicale will do complete bumper-to-bumper detailing at the location or throughout Hillsborough County with its mobile unit.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2018; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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adv.adj.1901