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

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

On the boulevard itself, parking spots were filling up as drivers hurtled down the busy roadway.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026

In the afternoon, Iranian TV footage showed thousands of mourners dressed in black walking along a main boulevard in central Mashhad.

From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026

Some protesters carried giant pink flamingos through the crowd that marched to the government headquarters on Tirana's main boulevard.

From Barron's ● Jul. 4, 2026

They walked through the zoo and down the boulevard, the three of them, Amanda and Mars Bar/ Snickers and Maniac, Amanda grumbling all the way: .

From "Maniac Magee" by Jerry Spinelli

State media reported that millions of mourners filled the main boulevards connecting the squares and crowding around the black lorry that carried the coffin of the late supreme leader and four family members.

From BBC ● Jul. 6, 2026

The chosen location was not a stadium, but an urban setting ideal for spreading a visible, continuous wave: the emblematic Paseo de la Reforma, an iconic arterial road inspired by European boulevards.

From BBC ● Jun. 7, 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

All northbound traffic is being diverted off at Howard Hughes Parkway and on ramps at Sepulveda and La Tijera boulevards are closed along with Howard Hughes Parkway.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2026

Gone are the tall, leafy, lustrous flowered trees that lined the wide boulevards.

From "First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers" by Loung Ung

Related Words

• artery
• avenue
• highway
• thoroughfare