Agency Dictionary

Bottleneck

nounPronunciation: /ˈbɒt.əl.nek/

In Portuguese: Gargalo

Business & Organizations

What does “Bottleneck” mean?

A point of congestion or obstruction that impedes progress or restricts flow in a production or organizational system.

Etymology

A compound of bottle and neck. Bottle comes from Old French boteille, from Medieval Latin butticula, a diminutive of Late Latin buttis, "cask". Neck continues Old English hnecca. The literal sense is the narrow top of a bottle. In the 19th century the word was applied to a narrow stretch of road where traffic slows, and in the 20th century to any stage of a process that limits the flow of the whole.

Usage note

Used as a noun and, in technical writing, as a verb (the process is bottlenecked by one machine). In music, a bottleneck is the tube slid along guitar strings.

Synonyms

chokepoint
constriction
congestion
obstruction
logjam
holdup

Word family

bottle
neck

Rhymes with

check
deck
wreck
tech

Usage examples

A solution can be implemented by filling the gaps and fixing the bottlenecks within a system.

Concepts

Source editions

Where this entry comes from in the Agency editorial.

Issue.15 - 10.000 ImpressionsMay 4, 2023Read the edition

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Also from these editions: terms

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Hermeneuticsnoun: The branch of knowledge that deals with interpretation, especially of literary texts and philosophical works. It examines how meaning is mediated through linguistic context.
Impressionnoun: An indentation or mark produced on a surface by pressure, or an effect or feeling produced in someone's mind.
Misogynynoun: Dislike of, contempt for, or ingrained prejudice against women that enforces patriarchal inequality and discrimination.
Monologuenoun: A prolonged talk or speech by one person, especially in a drama, conversation, or solo rhetorical presentation.
Naivetynoun: Lack of worldly experience, cynicism, or judgment; natural innocence, simplicity, and uncorrupted openness of mind.
Paradoxicaladjective: Seemingly self-contradictory or absurd, yet expressing a possible or underlying truth upon deeper investigation.
Relentlessadjective: Oppressively constant, unyielding, and refusing to abate in intensity, pace, or determination.
Subordinationnoun: The act of placing in a lower rank or secondary position, or the state of being subject to the authority of another.