Zil lane, n.

zil-lane
http://www.oed.com/dictionary/zil-lane_n%3Ftab%3Dmeaning_and_use
First published 2021

# Zil lanenoun

## Factsheet

### What does the noun Zil lane mean?

There is one meaning in OED's entry for the noun Zil lane. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definition, usage, and quotation evidence.

### How is the noun Zil lane pronounced?

#### British English

/ˈzɪl leɪn/
ZIL layn

#### U.S. English

/ˈzɪl ˌleɪn/
ZIL layn

### Where does the noun Zil lane come from?

Earliest known use

1980s

The earliest known use of the noun Zil lane is in the 1980s.

OED's earliest evidence for Zil lane is from 1985, in the Guardian.

Zil lane is a borrowing from Russian, combined with an English element.

Etymons: Russian ZIL, lane n.1

### Nearby entries

1. zigzag trefoil, n. 1796–
2. zig-zig, n. 1918–
3. Zika, n. 1952–
4. Zilavka, n. 1926–
5. zilch, n. & adj. 1925–
6. zilch, v. 1957–
7. zill, n. 1754–
8. zilla, n. 1772–
9. -zilla, comb. form
10. zilladar, n. 1763–
11. Zil lane, n.1985–
12. zilla parishad, n. 1957–
13. zillion, n. & adj. 1920–
14. zillionaire, n. 1926–
15. zillionth, n. & adj. 1940–
16. zimb, n. 1790–
17. Zimba, n. 1625–
18. Zimbabwe, n. 1891–
19. Zimbabwean, adj. & n. 1961–
20. zimbel, n. 1888–
21. zimme, n. 1848–63

## Etymology

### Summary

A borrowing from Russian, combined with an English element.
Etymons: Russian ZIL, lane n.1
< Russian ZIL limousine or luxury saloon car produced at the ZIL plant for use by high-ranking officials in the Soviet Union (1959 or earlier in this sense; see below) + lane n.1…
< Russian ZIL limousine or luxury saloon car produced at the ZIL plant for use by high-ranking officials in the Soviet Union (1959 or earlier in this sense; see below) + lane n.1

### Notes

Russian ZIL is an acronym < the initial letters of Zavod imeni Lixačëva ‘Likhachov Plant’ (named in 1956 after its former director, Ivan Alekseevič Lixačëv (1896–1956)).

## Meaning & use

1. 1985–
   A central motorway lane reserved for the use of high-ranking officials in the Soviet Union; (in extended use) any lane reserved for elites.
   1. 1985

      > The main thorough-fares are positively grandiose, up to nine lanes wide. The odd number is explained by the central Zil lane, reserved for Kremlin limousines.

      Guardian 3 June 20/5
   2. 2006

      > He clearly still thinks that he's entitled to his Life In The Zil Lane.

      Daily Mail (Nexis) 2 June 17
   3. 2012

      > When the Zil lanes opened, I railed against the takeover of our capital by a foreign power: the International Olympic Committee.

      Mail on Sunday (Nexis) 18 November
   1. express lane 1912–
      Chiefly North American. A designated traffic lane intended to allow some vehicles to move faster; spec. a lane on a highway, motorway, etc., which…
   2. fast lane 1918–
      A lane of a dual carriageway, motorway, highway, etc., typically positioned adjacent to the central reservation and intended for vehicles which…
   3. slow lane 1918–
      A lane of a dual carriageway, motorway, highway, etc., intended for vehicles which are not overtaking. Cf. fast lane, n. 1.
   4. Zil lane 1985–
      A central motorway lane reserved for the use of high-ranking officials in the Soviet Union; (in extended use) any lane reserved for elites.
   View in Historical Thesaurus

## Pronunciation

### British English

/ˈzɪl leɪn/
ZIL layn

### U.S. English

/ˈzɪl ˌleɪn/
ZIL layn

####

##### Consonants

- ppea
- ttea
- kkey
- bbuy
- ddye
- ɡguy
- tʃchore
- dʒjay
- ffore
- θthaw
- ssore
- ʃshore
- vvee
- ðthee
- zzee
- ʒbeige
- xloch
- hhay
- llay
- ɬrhingyll
- rray
- wway
- jyore
- mmay
- nnay
- ŋsing

Some consonants can take the function of the vowel in unstressed syllables. Where necessary, a syllabic marker diacritic is used, hence /ˈpɛtl/ but /ˈpɛtl̩i/.

##### Vowels

- iːfleece
- ihappy
- ɪkit
- ɛdress
- atrap, bath
- ɑːstart, palm, bath
- ɒlot
- ɔːthought, force
- ʌstrut
- ʊfoot
- uːgoose
- əletter
- əːnurse
- ɪənear
- ɛːsquare
- ʊəcure
- eɪface
- ʌɪpride
- aʊmouth
- əʊgoat
- ɔɪvoice
- ãgratin
- ɒ̃salon
- ᵻ(/ɪ/-/ə/)
- ᵿ(/ʊ/-/ə/)

##### Other symbols

- The symbol ˈ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with primary stress.
- The symbol ˌ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with secondary stress.
- Round brackets ( ) in a transcription indicate that the symbol within the brackets is optional.

View the pronunciation model here.

####

##### Consonants

- ppea
- ttea
- kkey
- bbuy
- ddye*
- ɡguy
- tʃchore
- dʒjay
- ffore
- θthaw
- ssore
- ʃshore
- vvee
- ðthee
- zzee
- ʒbeige
- xloch
- hhay
- llay
- rray
- wway
- jyore
- mmay
- nnay
- ŋsing

* /d/ also represents a 'tapped' /t/ as in

Some consonants can take the function of the vowel in unstressed syllables. Where necessary, a syllabic marker diacritic is used, hence /ˈpɛd(ə)l/ but /ˈpɛdl̩i/.

##### Vowels

- ifleece, happy
- ɪkit
- ɛdress
- ætrap, bath
- ɑlot, palm, cloth, thought
- ɑrstart
- ɔcloth, thought
- ɔrnorth, force
- ʊfoot
- ugoose
- əstrut, comma
- ərnurse, letter
- ɪ(ə)rnear
- ɛ(ə)rsquare
- ʊ(ə)rcure
- eɪface
- aɪpride
- aʊmouth
- oʊgoat
- ɔɪvoice
- ɑ̃gratin
- æ̃salon
- ᵻ(/ɪ/-/ə/)
- ᵿ(/ʊ/-/ə/)

##### Other symbols

- The symbol ˈ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with primary stress.
- The symbol ˌ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with secondary stress.
- Round brackets ( ) in a transcription indicate that the symbol within the brackets is optional.

View the pronunciation model here.

####

Simple text respell breaks words into syllables, separated by a hyphen. The syllable which carries the primary stress is written in capital letters. This key covers both British and U.S. English Simple Text Respell.

##### Consonants

b, d, f, h, k, l, m, n, p, r, s, t, v, w and z have their standard English values

- gguy
- jjay
- yyore
- chchore
- khloch
- shshore
- ththaw
- dhthee
- zhbeige

##### Vowels

- atrap
- ahpalm
- airsquare
- arstart
- arrcarry (British only)
- awthought
- ayface
- a(ng)gratin
- edress
- eefleece
- eerdeer
- errmerry
- ikit
- ighpride
- irrmirror
- olot (British only)
- ohgoat
- oogoose
- oorcure
- orforce
- orrsorry (British only)
- owmouth
- oyvoice
- o(ng)salon
- ustrut
- uhletter
- urnurse
- urrhurry
- uufoot

## Forms

### Variant forms

1. 1900s–
   Zil lane
2. 2000s–
   ZIL lane, ZiL lane

Zil lane, n. was first published in March 2021.

Zil lane, n. was last modified in July 2023.