- logjam
-
noun
Date: 1885
1. a jumble of logs jammed together in a watercourse
2.
a. deadlock, impasse <trying to break the logjam in negotiations> b. blockage c. jam, crowd • logjam transitive verb
New Collegiate Dictionary. 2001.
logjam
Look at other dictionaries:
logjam — UK US (also log jam) /ˈlɒɡdʒæm/ noun [C] ► a situation in which no progress can be made because an agreement cannot be reached: »The union told its members it would try to break the log jam by dealing with individual companies. a… … Financial and business terms
logjam — also log jam, congestion of logs on a river, by 1851, Amer.Eng.; see LOG (Cf. log) (n.1) + JAM (Cf. jam) (v.). The figurative sense is by 1890 … Etymology dictionary
logjam — ► NOUN 1) a crowded mass of logs blocking a river. 2) a deadlock. 3) a backlog … English terms dictionary
logjam — ☆ logjam [lôg′jam΄ ] n. 1. an obstacle formed by logs jamming together in a stream 2. an obstacle formed by the accumulation of many items to deal with 3. a deadlock or impasse … English World dictionary
logjam — n. 1) to break (up), clear a logjam 2) (fig.) (esp. AE) a legislative logjam * * * [ lɒgdʒæm] clear a logjam (fig.) (esp. AE) a legislative logjam to break (up) … Combinatory dictionary
logjam — UK [ˈlɒɡˌdʒæm] / US [ˈlɔɡˌdʒæm] noun [countable] Word forms logjam : singular logjam plural logjams a situation in which one problem is stopping anything else from being done They need to break the logjam that has held up the talks for weeks … English dictionary
logjam — noun a) An excess of logs being conveyed on a river, so that their motion halts. Efforts to amend the law got sidetracked in an administrative logjam. b) A clog or such jam or mess that halts or greatly delays progress. A step forward for the… … Wiktionary
logjam — [[t]lɒ̱gʤæm[/t]] logjams N COUNT: usu sing To break the logjam means to change or deal with a difficult situation which has existed for a long time. [JOURNALISM] A new initiative was needed to break the logjam … English dictionary
logjam — /ˈlɒgdʒæm/ (say logjam) noun 1. a mass of logs forming a wedge across a current, behind which the logs are trapped. 2. any similar situation in which items which ought to be flowing smoothly forward are piled up behind one another: *trying to… …
logjam — /lawg jam , log /, n. 1. an immovable pileup or tangle of logs, as in a river, causing a blockage. 2. any blockage or massive accumulation: a logjam of bills before Congress. [1880 85; LOG1 + JAM1] * * * … Universalium
