bottleneck
noun
What bottleneck means
A point in a process where work slows down because too much has to pass through one narrow place.
The approval step is the bottleneck in our process.
One slow printer created a bottleneck in the office.
Test yourself
Five questions about bottleneck
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Question 1 of 5Meaning
What does bottleneck mean?
A bottleneck is the one slow part of a system, like a busy step that everything has to wait for, so the whole process moves slowly.
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Question 2 of 5Situation
Every order has to go through one old machine, so work piles up in front of it while the other machines wait. The old machine is a…
Everything has to pass through that one slow machine, so it holds up the whole process, and that is what a bottleneck does.
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Question 3 of 5Gap
Only one person can approve payments, so approval has become a ___ that slows down the whole team.
When one narrow step makes everybody wait, as here with only one person approving payments, that slow point is a bottleneck.
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Question 4 of 5Word partner
Which verb goes with bottleneck? We must ___ the bottleneck so orders move faster.
You remove or clear a bottleneck, which means you get rid of the slow point. You meet a deadline and earn money, but you do not meet or earn a bottleneck.
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Question 5 of 5Correct use
Which sentence uses bottleneck correctly?
A bottleneck is a countable slow point, so you remove a bottleneck, not much bottleneck. It slows work down, so it does not make things faster and is nothing to celebrate.
Keys 1 to 4 pick an answer, Enter goes on.
Bottleneck in a sentence
5 more examples of bottleneck in everyday situations.
- At work
Our designer is the bottleneck, because every page has to wait for her approval.
- On the road
The bridge is a bottleneck, and traffic builds up there every morning.
- In the news
Port bottlenecks are slowing down deliveries of electronics across the country.
- In meetings
Let’s find the bottleneck before we hire more people.
- Computers
The slow hard drive was the real bottleneck, not the processor.
How to use bottleneck
The word comes from the narrow neck of a bottle. Traffic and production lines can both have bottlenecks.
You find, remove or clear a bottleneck. The problem is not the whole system, just one slow part.
Forms
- bottlenecksplural
- bottleneckverb (less common)
Patterns
- a bottleneck in something
- create / cause a bottleneck
- remove / ease a bottleneck
- the main bottleneck
Common mistakes with bottleneck
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NotThe bottle neck in our process is approval.
SayThe bottleneck in our process is approval.
Bottleneck is written as one word, even though it comes from the narrow neck of a bottle.
Bottleneck or obstacle or delay?
- bottleneck or obstacle
- An obstacle is anything that blocks you from doing something; a bottleneck is a specific narrow point where work or traffic slows down because too much has to pass through it.
- bottleneck or delay
- A delay is the extra time something takes; a bottleneck is the place or step that causes the delay.
Bottleneck is a C1 word. Is that your level? Take the level test or count the words you know.
Bottleneck word family and collocations
The words that go with bottleneck, so you can use it in a whole phrase.
Common collocations
- a bottleneck in
- create a bottleneck
- remove a bottleneck
- a traffic bottleneck
- a major bottleneck
Word family
- bottleneck (noun)
Similar words
- blockage
Questions about bottleneck
Where does the word bottleneck come from?
It comes from the narrow neck of a bottle: liquid can only come out slowly through it, just as work slows down at one narrow point in a process.
Is bottleneck one word?
Yes, bottleneck is written as one word, with no space or hyphen. The plural is bottlenecks.
What does it mean to remove a bottleneck?
It means fixing the slow step in a process, for example by adding staff, buying better equipment or changing the rules, so that work moves faster.
The word before
Do you still remember potluck?
One question about the word from 19 October. Remembering a word a day later helps it stay.
One question
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What does potluck mean?
At a potluck the host does not cook all the food. Every guest makes or buys one dish and brings it, and everybody shares.
Keys 1 to 4 pick an answer.
More work words
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B2
postpone
To move an event or a task to a later time than planned. -
C1
onboarding
The process of helping a new employee or customer get started, with introductions, training and information. -
B2
brainstorm
To think of many ideas quickly, often in a group, before you decide which ones are good. -
B2
thorough
Done carefully and completely, with attention to every detail. -
B2
feedback
Comments about someone’s work or actions that tell them what was good and what could be better. -
C1
reimburse
To pay someone back money that they spent for you.