third rails
Subway power conductors
A third rail is the electrified rail that powers subway and rail systems, positioned alongside the running tracks and carrying enough voltage to kill on contact.
The figurative meaning dominates: a third rail is any topic so politically dangerous that touching it means career death.
Social Security is the classic American example—Social Security is the third rail of American politics.
The plural often describes multiple such topics: Guns and abortion are third rails for many candidates.
- electrifiedGiven electrical current
- electric currentCharge flow through conductors
- subwayUnderground transit passage
- trackPath or monitored route
- power supplyElectrical energy delivery device
power grid · unspoken rule · power · train · high voltage · conductor · insulator · pantograph · danger · shock · untouchable · off limits · warning · ethical dilemma · metal · locomotive · current · spark
- electrical systemswiring, circuits, voltage, transformers, electricity
third railscrowd-pleasers
Reliably popular entertainment choices
low-hanging fruit · motherhood and apple pie · talking points
third, rail, rails, thirds, thirdly, railed, railing, railings, railroad