avenue
Americannoun
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a wide street or main thoroughfare.
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a means of access or attainment.
avenues of escape; avenues to greater power.
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a way or means of entering into or approaching a place.
the various avenues to India.
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Chiefly British.
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a wide, usually tree-lined road, path, driveway, etc., through grounds to a country house or monumental building.
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a suburban, usually tree-lined residential street.
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noun
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a broad street, often lined with trees
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(capital as part of a street name) a road, esp in a built-up area
Shaftesbury Avenue
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a main approach road, as to a country house
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a way bordered by two rows of trees
an avenue of oaks
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a line of approach
explore every avenue
Related Words
See street.
Etymology
Origin of avenue
First recorded in 1590–1600; from French, literally, “approach,” noun use of feminine past participle of avenir, from Latin advenīre “to come to.” See a- 5, venue
Explanation
An avenue is a street, especially a wide one lined with trees. An avenue is also any approach to doing something. For example, this web site might be a new avenue you have found for learning words. The word avenue comes from the French avenir, meaning "to come to, or arrive." The first meaning is simply a wide street. An avenue — or boulevard — is likely to be busy, unlike a quiet side street. The abbreviation is ave., as in Park Ave. Also, an avenue is a way to accomplish something. If you need money but can't get a loan, you'll have to find another avenue.
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.
Videogames, with their virtual worlds and continuous decision-making, were one promising avenue.
From MarketWatch • May 23, 2026
Another avenue Pratt put forward in an interview posted on YouTube is using the expanded definition of gravely disabled in a law championed and signed into law by Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2023.
From Los Angeles Times • May 19, 2026
"The gene-therapy approach in this study is a new avenue that can complement and potentially augment what will surely be a multi-disciplinary solution to one day regenerate human limbs."
From Science Daily • May 9, 2026
This is an avenue that Fagan leaves completely unexplored.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 30, 2026
She looked ahead, down the long avenue, where Gabriel walked with Florence, where John walked with Elisha.
From "Go Tell It on the Mountain" by James Baldwin
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.
