boulevard

American  

[bool-uh-vahrd, boo-luh-] / ˈbʊl əˌvɑrd, ˈbu lə- /

noun

• boulevards
  plural

1. a broad avenue in a city, usually having areas at the sides or center for trees, grass, or flowers.

2. Also called boulevard strip.  Upper Midwest. a strip of lawn between a sidewalk and the curb.

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boulevard British  

/ ˈbuːlvɑː, -vɑːd /

noun

1. 1. a wide usually tree-lined road in a city, often used as a promenade

   2. ( capital as part of a street name )

      Sunset Boulevard

2. 1. a grass strip between the pavement and road

   2. the strip of ground between the edge of a private property and the road

   3. the centre strip of a road dividing traffic travelling in different directions

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Synonym Usage

See street.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• boulevards
  plural

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."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

boulevard boulevards

On a recent Sunday, he officiated a packed Mass at the church of Saint Bartholomew the Apostle in Macuto, a city known for its seaside boulevard.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

Developers are also watching for any progress on a new science research campus in Manhattan’s Kips Bay neighborhood and the revamped boulevard stretching along Fifth Avenue from Bryant Park to Central Park.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026

Hanging above the boulevard were banners with official slogans including "We must rise".

From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026

Hollywood was clad in black and glittering sequins on Monday to host the Los Angeles premiere of Michael Jackson's biopic, drawing fans of the King of Pop to the iconic California boulevard.

From Barron's ● Apr. 21, 2026

Beyond the main boulevard, the city was a hodgepodge of medieval castle towers, Roman walls, limestone town houses with red-tiled roofs, and modern office buildings all crammed together.

From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan

Since becoming mayor in January, Mamdani has widened bike lanes, announced plans for new bike boulevards and prioritized improving pedestrian walkways.

From Salon ● Aug. 27, 2026

The effort is beginning to bear fruit: the clusters of tents and shopping carts that once clogged the boulevards of Hollywood and Venice Beach are less numerous.

From Barron's ● Jun. 7, 2026

These long, winding, canal-like tunnels, big enough for boats, are nothing short of the subterranean answer to the city’s boulevards, with an unexpected, if somewhat infernal, majesty.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 10, 2026

In central Abuja, wide boulevards, embassies and high-rise apartments signal heavy state investment.

From BBC ● Apr. 3, 2026

A chain-link fence ran all the way around, and it was bordered on three sides by squat stone houses and on the fourth by another of Yazd’s boulevards.

From "Darius the Great Is Not Okay" by Adib Khorram

Related Words

• artery
• avenue
• highway
• thoroughfare