Beltway
adj, name, noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 A freeway that encircles a city. US
- 2 a highway that encircles an urban area so that traffic does not have to pass through the center wordnet
- 1 Of or relating to the culture of Washington, D.C., sometimes with a suggestion of its elitism or insularity; politicized.
"Apparently wishing to go Beltway in a big way, the Gap reportedly solicited Clinton spokesman George Stephanopoulos and media adviser Mandy Grunwald to pose for ads, but were turned down."
- 1 A 64-mile Interstate freeway surrounding Washington, D.C.
- 2 The expressway that surrounds another city.
- 3 The US federal government and policy and lobbying organizations, located in Washington, D.C., sometimes with a suggestion of their elitism or insularity US
"But given that it takes 60 votes to beat a filibuster and 66 to override a veto, and given that the GOP has since added four hard-right senators to its total, it’s safe to say that nothing will be happening inside the Beltway anytime soon."
Example
More examples"But given that it takes 60 votes to beat a filibuster and 66 to override a veto, and given that the GOP has since added four hard-right senators to its total, it’s safe to say that nothing will be happening inside the Beltway anytime soon."
Etymology
Extended from beltway (“freeway encircling a city”); compare also highway.
From belt + way.
Related phrases
More for "beltway"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.