Basic+ Word of the Day: bypass

bypass (noun, verb) past tense: bypassed

"Take the bypass; it's faster than going through the city center."

A bypass is a road that allows motorists to avoid heavy traffic by driving around an obstruction.

• Although the bypass goes around the city, it's actually faster than going through downtown.

A bypass is also a surgical procedure that redirects the flow of blood around a blockage.

• Margaret had triple bypass surgery.
• The coronary bypass was a success.

Bypass also means ‘to avoid by following a bypass.’

• On our driving trip from St. Louis to Milwaukee, we bypass Chicago.

Did you know?

You can also use bypass in a figurative sense. For example, “When Cooper wanted a second dessert, he bypassed his parents and went directly to Grandma.”

In pop culture

In the The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Arthur Dent protests against a highway bypass that is being constructed right through his house. Have you seen the movie? It’s based on a book by Douglas Adams!

There are other meanings of bypass.