off-ramp

• offramp

From off +‎ ramp.

off-ramp (plural off-ramps)

1. (Canada, US, Australia) A segment of roadway that directs vehicular traffic from a freeway onto local roads. [from 20th c.]

   Synonyms: exit ramp, (Britain) off-slip

   Coordinate term: on-ramp

2. (by extension) An exit strategy.
   • 2022 March 4, David E. Sanger, Eric Schmitt, Julian E. Barnes, “Washington’s Newest Worry: The Dangers of Cornering Putin”, in The New York Times‎, →ISSN:

     And at least for now, there is no discernible off-ramp for the Russian leader short of declaring a cease-fire or pulling back his forces — steps he has so far shown no interest in taking.

   • 2022 June 10, Andrew Roth, “Putin compares himself to Peter the Great in quest to take back Russian lands”, in The Guardian‎:

     An adviser to the Ukrainian government said the comments showed that attempts to negotiate with Putin or find an “off-ramp” from the conflict for Putin, as French president, Emmanuel Macron, has sought to do, were misguided.

• slip road

• “off-ramp”, in Collins English Dictionary.
• “off-ramp, n.”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
• “off-ramp”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
• “off-ramp”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
• “off-ramp” in TheFreeDictionary.com, Huntingdon Valley, Pa.: Farlex, Inc., 2003–2024.