noun
motorway, highway
A1
'Autobahn' means 'motorway' or 'highway'. Feminine noun (die Autobahn; plural Autobahnen). Refers to high-speed limited-access roads in Germany; often collocated with preposition 'auf' (auf der Autobahn). Regular plural formation. Used like other roads (auf der Autobahn fahren, die Autobahn benutzen).
Examples
Wir fahren die Autobahn bis zur Ausfahrt 12.
We take the motorway until exit 12.
Auf der Autobahn darf man oft schneller fahren.
On the highway you can often drive faster.
Auf der Autobahn bildete sich ein Stau, weil ein Lkw liegen blieb.
A traffic jam formed on the motorway because a truck broke down.
Details
Mnemonics
a long multi-lane road with cars speeding
auto + bahn (train) -> big road for cars
die - think 'die Bahn' (the railway) feminine; Autobahn is like the 'car-rail' for cars
Notes
Plural Autobahnen. Important for travel vocabulary in German-speaking countries.