Telford

/ˈtɛlfərd/ noun, proper noun

Definition

A type of road surface made of large stones broken into smaller pieces and compacted together, named after Scottish engineer Thomas Telford.

Etymology

Named after Thomas Telford (1757-1834), a renowned Scottish civil engineer who pioneered this road construction method. His last name became synonymous with the technique. The method was revolutionary for improving road quality in the early 1800s.

Kelly Says

Thomas Telford built over 1,000 miles of roads across Scotland using this technique—so good that some of those roads still exist and function today! When an engineer's name becomes the word for their invention, that's when you know you've really changed the world.

Related Words

Explore More Words

Get the Word Orb API

Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.