渋滞（じゅうたい、juutai）
- traffic jam

The Japanese word 渋滞 (じゅうたい) means "traffic jam" or "congestion." It refers to a situation where there are many vehicles on a road, causing slow movement or a complete standstill. This can happen on highways, city streets, and other roadways. The word describes the state of the traffic itself, not just the physical location of the vehicles. It implies a delay or disruption in the normal flow of traffic.

⚫︎高速道路で渋滞が起きています。 Translation: There is a traffic jam on the highway. ⚫︎週末は観光地周辺で渋滞が発生しやすいです。 Translation: Traffic jams are likely to occur around tourist destinations on weekends. ⚫︎渋滞で、会議に遅れてしまいました。 Translation: I was late for the meeting because of the traffic jam.

You use 渋滞 when talking about traffic jams. ⚫︎It's commonly used when discussing travel plans, making apologies for being late, or reporting on traffic conditions. ⚫︎It can be used in both formal and informal conversations. ⚫︎You can use the verb する suru to express "to be in a traffic jam". For example: 渋滞する(じゅうたいする)

渋滞 is typically written in kanji 渋滞 and read as じゅうたい. The hiragana reading is the standard pronunciation. There are no other ways to write the word and no variations in the okurigana.

There aren't many direct synonyms, but here are some related terms: ⚫︎混雑(こんざつ): congestion, crowdedness (can be used for people or traffic) ⚫︎ラッシュ(らっしゅ): rush hour (often implying traffic congestion)

There aren't many direct antonyms, but you can use words and phrases to describe the opposite, such as: ⚫︎スムーズな交通(スムーズなこうつう): smooth traffic ⚫︎流れがいい(ながれがいい): good traffic flow

朝の通勤ラッシュで、いつも渋滞に巻き込まれます。 ・Translation: I always get caught in traffic jams during the morning commute rush. ・Explanation: This sentence describes the speaker's experience of being stuck in traffic during rush hour.

今日の高速道路は酷い渋滞で、予定より2時間も遅れました。 ・Translation: The highway had terrible traffic congestion today, and I was delayed by two hours. ・Explanation: This sentence explains a situation where traffic congestion caused a significant delay.

渋滞 is a compound word. ⚫︎渋(しぶ) itself means "bitter" or "astringent." ⚫︎滞(たい) means "stagnation" or "delay". Putting these together, the kanji implies the "bitter" or difficult experience of "stagnated" traffic.