Dictionary

1bottleneck

adjective bot·tle·neck \ˈbä-təl-ˌnek\

Definition of BOTTLENECK

:  narrow <bottleneck harbors>
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First Known Use of BOTTLENECK

1896

2bottleneck

noun

: a section of road or highway where the traffic moves very slowly

: something that slows down a process

Full Definition of BOTTLENECK

1
a :  a narrow route
b :  a point of traffic congestion
2
a :  someone or something that retards or halts free movement and progress
b :  impasse
c :  a dramatic reduction in the size of a population (as of a species) that results in a decrease in genetic variation
3
:  a style of guitar playing in which glissando effects are produced by sliding an object (as a knife blade or the neck of a bottle) along the strings —called also bottleneck guitar

First Known Use of BOTTLENECK

1907

Related to BOTTLENECK

3bottleneck

verb

Definition of BOTTLENECK

transitive verb
:  to slow or halt by causing a bottleneck

First Known Use of BOTTLENECK

1933
BOTTLENECK Defined for Kids

bottleneck

noun bot·tle·neck \ˈbä-təl-ˌnek\

Definition of BOTTLENECK for Kids

:  a place or condition where improvement or movement is held up <That intersection is a traffic bottleneck.>

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