boulevard
Americannoun
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a broad avenue in a city, usually having areas at the sides or center for trees, grass, or flowers.
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Also called boulevard strip. Upper Midwest. a strip of lawn between a sidewalk and the curb.
noun
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a wide usually tree-lined road in a city, often used as a promenade
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( capital as part of a street name )
Sunset Boulevard
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a grass strip between the pavement and road
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the strip of ground between the edge of a private property and the road
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the centre strip of a road dividing traffic travelling in different directions
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Synonym Usage
See street.
Etymology
Origin of boulevard
First recorded in 1765–75; from French, Middle French (originally Picard, Walloon ): “rampart, avenue built on the site of a razed rampart,” from Middle Dutch bol(le)werc; see bulwark
Explanation
A boulevard is a type of street. You can get to school by taking the four-lane boulevard, but to avoid all the traffic, you might use the less-traveled side streets. A boulevard is a street or avenue, especially one that's very wide and lined with trees. Many boulevards have a median strip of grass and sometimes trees. Boulevard strip is the regional term for a patch of grass between a curb and a sidewalk, which in other places is called a tree lawn. The French word boulevard literally means "rampart," or "defensive embankment." Later it was adapted to mean "a promenade beside a rampart."
Vocabulary lists containing boulevard
List 10
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List 8
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for May 25–May 31, 2024
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The operation, at the vacant St. Luke Medical Center in the 2600 block of East Washington Boulevard, included simulated gunfire, flash grenades and a military helicopter that hovered over the building.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 6, 2026
We went for dinner at Noshi Sushi on Beverly Boulevard.
From Los Angeles Times • May 29, 2026
My car took the long way to get to Las Vegas Boulevard, aka The Strip, and speed bumps made that stretch, well, bumpy.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 29, 2026
The quiet and irritable TV editor I met at Guelaguetza on Olympic Boulevard.
From Los Angeles Times • May 29, 2026
When they had what they needed they started down Valley Boulevard, traveling east.
From "Lupita Mañana" by Patricia Beatty
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
