pavement

[peyv-muh nt] /ˈpeɪv mənt/
noun
1.
a paved road, highway, etc.
2.
a paved surface, ground covering, or floor.
3.
a material used for paving.
4.
Atlantic States and British, sidewalk.
Idioms
5.
pound the pavement, Informal. to walk the streets in order to accomplish something:
If you're going to find work you'd better start pounding the pavement.
Origin
1250-1300; Middle English < Old French < Latin pavīmentum. See pave, -ment
Related forms
pavemental
[peyv-men-tl] /peɪvˈmɛn tl/ (Show IPA), adjective
prepavement, noun
subpavement, noun
British Dictionary definitions for pound the pavement

pavement

/ˈpeɪvmənt/
noun
1.
a hard-surfaced path for pedestrians alongside and a little higher than a road US and Canadian word sidewalk
2.
a paved surface, esp one that is a thoroughfare
3.
the material used in paving
4.
(civil engineering) the hard layered structure that forms a road carriageway, airfield runway, vehicle park, or other paved areas
5.
(geology) a level area of exposed rock resembling a paved road See limestone pavement
Word Origin
C13: from Latin pavīmentum a hard floor, from pavīre to beat hard
Word Origin and History for pound the pavement

pavement

n.

mid-13c., from Old French pavement "roadway, pathway; paving stone" (12c.) and directly from Latin pavimentum "hard floor, level surface beaten firm," from pavire (see pave).

Slang definitions & phrases for pound the pavement

pound the pavement

verb phrase
  1. To walk a police beat
  2. To trudge about the streets, esp looking for work: the liberal arts graduates pounding the Park Avenue pavements (1940s+)

pound the pavement in the Bible

It was the custom of the Roman governors to erect their tribunals in open places, as the market-place, the circus, or even the highway. Pilate caused his seat of judgment to be set down in a place called "the Pavement" (John 19:13) i.e., a place paved with a mosaic of coloured stones. It was probably a place thus prepared in front of the "judgment hall." (See GABBATHA.)

Idioms and Phrases with pound the pavement

pound the pavement

Walk the streets, especially in search of employment. For example, He was fired last year and he's been pounding the pavement ever since. A similar usage is pound a beat, meaning “to walk a particular route over and over”; it is nearly always applied to a police officer. [ Early 1900s ]

pavement

see: pound the pavement