rush hour

American  

noun

• rush hours
  plural

1. a time of day in which large numbers of people are in transit, as going to or returning from work, and that is characterized by particularly heavy traffic.

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rush hour British  

noun

1. a period at the beginning and end of the working day when large numbers of people are travelling to or from work

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• rush-hour
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• rush hours
  plural

Etymology

Origin of rush hour

First recorded in 1895–1900

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

rush hour

The flow eventually waned but picked up again during the morning rush hour on Wednesday as workers crossed over from the Spanish side.

From Barron's ● Jul. 15, 2026

After the two steel columns buckled and several floors of the building began to sag, nine surrounding buildings were evacuated and emergency responders blocked off the streets amid morning rush hour.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026

A BBC reporter on the scene said traffic was bumper to bumper, with several roads closed during rush hour traffic.

From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026

A semitruck caught fire on Interstate 5 north of Castaic on Monday and sparked a blaze in the adjacent brush, leading to lane closures and lengthy rush hour delays.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 7, 2026

The traffic is slow on Main Street, not because Chokecherry is big enough to have a rush hour, but because the cars have to snake around the parked trucks and plows.

From "Linked" by Gordon Korman

Related Words

• congestion
• traffic jam