# turnpike

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈtɜː(ɹ)npaɪk/ · frequency rank #23,138

## Definitions
1. A frame consisting of two bars crossing each other at right angles and turning on a post or pin, to hinder the passage of animals, but admitting a person to pass between the arms.
2. A gate or bar set across a road to stop carriages, animals, and sometimes people, until a toll is paid.
3. A winding stairway.
4. A beam filled with spikes to obstruct passage; a cheval de frise.
5. A toll road, especially a toll expressway.
6. A trajectory on a finite time interval that satisfies an optimality criterion which is associated with a cost function.

## Etymology
From Middle English turnpyke (“spiked barrier across a road”), originally used to block access to such a road until a toll was paid. Equivalent to modern turn + pike (“shaft”).

## Common misspellings (12)
`trunpike`, `tturnpike`, `tunrpike`, `turnipke`, `turnnpike`, `turnpiek`, `turnpikke`, `turnpkie`, `turnppike`, `turpnike`, `turrnpike`, `utrnpike`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/turnpike