1.
road shoulder; roadside; edge of the road
The paved or unpaved strip along the edge of a road, outside the main traffic lanes. Used for emergency stops, breakdowns, or pedestrians where no sidewalk exists.
路肩に車を止めた。
I pulled over to the road shoulder.
故障した車が路肩に停まっている。
A broken-down car is stopped on the road shoulder.
高速道路の路肩に駐車するのは大変危険なので、緊急時を除いてやめてください。
Parking on the highway shoulder is extremely dangerous, so please don't do it except in emergencies.
Composed of 路 (road) + 肩 (shoulder). The metaphor of 'shoulder' for the edge of a road exists in both Japanese and English.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 路肩に止める: to pull over to the shoulder
- 路肩に寄せる: to move to the shoulder
- 路肩走行: driving on the shoulder (illegal on highways)
- 路肩駐車: parking on the shoulder
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 歩道: sidewalk — a separate path for pedestrians
- 車道: roadway — the portion of the road for vehicles
- 側道: side road — a narrow road running parallel to a main road
NOTE:
On Japanese highways (高速道路), driving or stopping on the 路肩 is prohibited except in genuine emergencies. 路肩走行 (shoulder driving) during traffic jams is a traffic violation.