hard shoulder
Britishnoun
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.
"On day five my wing mirror got clipped by a passing vehicle and I skidded onto the hard shoulder" but was "relatively unscathed".
From BBC ● Aug. 23, 2026
The horrific reality was that their car was stranded in the outside lane - lane four - of a smart motorway, with no hard shoulder to escape to in the event of a breakdown.
From BBC ● Feb. 18, 2026
Dynamic hard shoulder roads permit traffic on the hard shoulder at peak times, while all-lane-running schemes get rid of the hard shoulder altogether, replacing it permanently with a live lane.
From BBC ● Feb. 6, 2026
When there is no hard shoulder drivers who get into trouble are meant to aim for refuge areas located at regular points, but broken-down cars can sometimes be left stranded in a live lane.
From BBC ● Feb. 6, 2026
She put her arms round his terrifying, insentient body, and laid her cheek against his hard shoulder.
From Women in Love by D. H. (David Herbert) Lawrence
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
