congest

American  

[kuhn-jest] / kənˈdʒɛst /

verb (used with object)

1. to fill to excess; overcrowd or overburden; clog.

   The subway entrance was so congested that no one could move.

2. Pathology. to cause an unnatural accumulation of blood or other fluid in (a body part or blood vessel).

   The cold congested her sinuses.

3. Obsolete. to heap together.

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verb (used without object)

1. to become congested.

   His throat congested with phlegm.

congest British  

/ kənˈdʒɛst /

verb

1. to crowd or become crowded to excess; overfill

2. to overload or clog (an organ or part) with blood or (of an organ or part) to become overloaded or clogged with blood

3. (tr; usually passive) to block (the nose) with mucus

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Other Word Forms

• congestible adjective
• congestive adjective
• noncongestive adjective
• precongested adjective
• precongestive adjective
• supercongested adjective
• uncongested adjective
• uncongestive adjective

Etymology

Origin of congest

1530–40; < Latin congestus (past participle of congerere; see congeries), equivalent to con- con- + ges- (variant stem of gerere ) + -tus past participle suffix

Explanation

The verb congest means to clog up and become blocked. It is frequently applied to a head cold, when your nose begins to congest. During rush hour the roadways begin to be congested, as they become blocked and vehicles slow down. We know that "con-" means "together," and the Latin congestus, which is the source of the word congest, means "collected, heaped up." Something that is congested can certainly be thought of as heaped full of stuff. By 1758, the word had taken on the medical meaning of an "accumulation" — think of your nose during a cold! — and the idea of congest as referring to something "overcrowded" was noted in 1859, giving rise to the idea of overcrowded cities as congested.

Example Sentences

But it all serves to congest an already sluggish, choppy and exasperating film, one which asks you to suspend your disbelief— big time — with little emotional reward in return.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 6, 2023

Space Command, told reporters on a teleconference from Hawaii that such ASAT, or anti-satellite, tests congest space with debris.

From Reuters • Dec. 9, 2022

The disruption threatened to further congest a global supply chain already hampered by delays.

From New York Times • Jul. 21, 2022

The protest has inspired others around the world to stage similar action, in a bid to congest city roads and attract attention - such as in France, the Netherlands, and New Zealand.

From BBC • Feb. 13, 2022

Take sculptured Statesmen, hand to breast, Who on our pavements smile, And half the statues that congest The Abbey's crowded aisle.

From The Motley Muse (Rhymes for the Times) by Graham, Harry

Related Words

• choke
• overburden
• overcrowd