railway sleeper
The British English term for a railroad tie — the rectangular wooden or concrete beam that lies perpendicular to the rails, keeping them in place and the correct distance apart.
Definitions
The British English term for a railroad tie — the rectangular wooden or concrete beam that lies perpendicular to the rails, keeping them in place and the correct distance apart. 'Railway sleeper' is standard in UK, Australian, and New Zealand English, while Americans say 'railroad tie' or 'crosstie.' Old wooden railway sleepers have become popular in UK gardening as rustic raised-bed edging material.
The garden path was edged with old railway sleepers that had been salvaged from a disused line.
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(rail, chiefly, UK) A railroad tie.
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- 77%
(rail transport, US) A heavy, preserved piece of hewn timber laid crossways to and supporting the rails of a railroad or a member of similar shape and function of another material such as concrete.
- 75%
A long, thin wooden beam used as a border in driveways, to hold in soil in gardens, etc.
- 69%
(US, rail) A pair of formed steel rails, separated and supported usually on wooden or concrete ties or sleepers, forming a track along which flange-wheeled railroad vehicles may travel.
- 67%
(rail, transitive, UK) To replace the sleepers of (a track).