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cable railway

American

noun

a railway on which the cars are pulled by a moving cable under the roadway.

cable railway British

noun

a railway on which individual cars are drawn along by a strong cable or metal chain operated by a stationary motor

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of cable railway

First recorded in 1885–90

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Portugal is in mourning after at least 17 people died and some 20 more were injured when Lisbon's famous funicular cable railway derailed on Wednesday evening.

From BBC • Sep. 4, 2025

A family in the U.K. has one of the country’s smallest funicular railways – a type of cable railway system on an incline – at their home.

From Fox News • Jan. 8, 2022

The funicular, or cable railway built on an incline, has a storied past.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 1, 2017

Travel in an old-timey cable railway up Mount Washington for a phenomenal view overlooking downtown Pittsburgh.

From Washington Post • Jul. 21, 2016

The city had 220 miles of paved streets, 180 miles of electric and 77 of cable railway, 62 hotels, 16 theatres, 4 large libraries, 5 daily newspapers, etc., together with 28 public parks.

From The San Francisco calamity by earthquake and fire by Morris, Charles

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023