switchback

American  

[swich-bak] / ˈswɪtʃˌbæk /

noun

1. a highway, as in a mountainous area, having many hairpin curves.

2. Railroads. a zigzag track arrangement for climbing a steep grade.

3. British. roller coaster.

---

verb (used without object)

1. (of a road, railroad track, etc.) to progress through a series of hairpin curves; zigzag.

   The road switchbacks up the mountain.

switchback British  

/ ˈswɪtʃˌbæk /

noun

1. a mountain road, railway, or track which rises and falls sharply many times or a sharp rise and fall on such a road, railway, or track

2. another word (esp Brit) for big dipper

---

Etymology

Origin of switchback

An Americanism dating back to 1860–65; switch + back ²

Example Sentences

From there, we hiked up a short but steep switchback that ended on a dirt plateau.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 28, 2025

The change should help spread the field before it powers into the uphill switchback turn No. 1 that created so many crashes and restarts last year.

From Seattle Times • Mar. 23, 2024

They found that the DNA formed switchback loops as it was pushed into the capsid, an important finding as it is similar to how DNA is organized in eukaryotic cells.

From Science Daily • Mar. 7, 2024

For the actual step, Rakshith chose a jiglike routine known as a hook step, with lots of switchback movements for arms and legs.

From New York Times • Feb. 21, 2023

They rode down to the first switchback and got away.

From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls