noun
Meaning 1
A steam-powered heavy road roller.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: historical
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Standard Lemma guide
steamroller
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
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General-American: /ˈstimˌroʊlɚ/
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US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
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CMU ARPABET: S T IY1 M R OW2 L ER0 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
noun
Meaning 2
Any heavy road roller.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: broadly, informal
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 3
Any seemingly irresistible force.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: figuratively
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 4
A pipe, used for smoking cannabis, open at both ends and having a bowl near one end.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: slang
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
verb
Meaning 5
To level a road using a steamroller.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: transitive
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: steamroll
Antonyms: none provided
verb
Meaning 6
To proceed ruthlessly against all opposition as if with an overwhelming force.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: figuratively, transitive
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: overpower, steamroll
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 7
vehicle equipped with heavy wide smooth rollers for compacting roads and pavements
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: road roller
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: vehicle
noun
Meaning 8
a massive inexorable force that seems to crush everything in its way
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: juggernaut
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: power, force
verb
Meaning 9
make level or flat with a steamroller
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
- steamroll the roads
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: steamroll
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: flatten
verb
Meaning 10
overwhelm by using great force
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
- steamroller the opposition
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: steamroll
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: overpower, overmaster, overwhelm
verb
Meaning 11
crush with a steamroller as if to level
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
- steamroller the road
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: squash, crush, squelch, mash, squeeze
verb
Meaning 12
proceed with great force
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
- The new teacher tends to steamroller
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: steamroll
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: go, proceed, move
verb
Meaning 13
bring to a specified state by overwhelming force or pressure
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
- The Senator steamrollered the bill to defeat
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: steamroll
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: coerce, hale, squeeze, pressure, force
History
Etymology
From steam + roller.
Across languages
Translations
24 source translations are retained for this English entry.
- Arabic: هَرَّاس (harrās) — steam-powered road roller
- Bulgarian: парен валяк (paren valjak) — steam-powered road roller
- Catalan: corró — steam-powered road roller
- Czech: parní válec — steam-powered road roller
- Esperanto: vaporcilindro — steam-powered road roller
- Finnish: höyryjyrä — steam-powered road roller
- French: rouleau compresseur — steam-powered road roller
- German: Dampfwalze — steam-powered road roller
- Hungarian: gőzhenger — steam-powered road roller
- Hungarian: úthenger — steam-powered road roller
- Italian: rullo compressore — steam-powered road roller
- Japanese: 蒸気ローラー (jōki-rōrā) — steam-powered road roller
- Korean: 증기 롤러 (jeunggi rolleo) — steam-powered road roller
- Macedonian: ва́лјак (váljak) — steam-powered road roller
- Spanish: apisonadora — steam-powered road roller
- Swedish: ångvält — steam-powered road roller
- Tagalog: pison — steam-powered road roller
- Finnish: höyryjyrä — figurative: irresistible force
- Hungarian: gőzhenger — figurative: irresistible force
- Swedish: ångvält — figurative: irresistible force
- Finnish: jyrätä — to level with a steamroller
- Bulgarian: смазвам (smazvam) — to proceed ruthlessly
- Bulgarian: смажа (smaža) — to proceed ruthlessly
- Finnish: jyrätä — to proceed ruthlessly
Real reading context