Macadamise

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To cover a road with a layer of crushed stone bound together with tar or bitumen, using the method pioneered by John Loudon McAdam
2. Lay down a road surface of broken stone compacted and sealed with tar in the manner associated with the McAdam technique
3. Pave a roadway by spreading layers of crushed rock that are bonded with tar so the surface becomes firm and durable

Etymology: John Loudon McAdam was a Scottish engineer whose name became a verb. Working on roads in the early 1800s, he favoured a surface of small, carefully sized broken stones, compacted and bound together so that water drained away rather than softening the road beneath. The method spread widely, and people began using his surname as the basis for a verb meaning to pave a road this way. The word is simply McAdam's surname with the suffix "-ize" added, the common English ending that turns a noun into a verb meaning "to treat or make into." It appeared around 1820, the same period in which his road-building method was being promoted. The alternative spelling "macadamise" follows British convention, with "-ise" in place of "-ize."

Synonyms: pave, surface, tar