neighborhood

American  

[ney-ber-hood] / ˈneɪ bərˌhʊd /

noun

1. the area or region around or near some place or thing; vicinity.

   the kids of the neighborhood; located in the neighborhood of Jackson and Vine streets.

2. a district or locality, often with reference to its character or inhabitants.

   a fashionable neighborhood; to move to a nicer neighborhood.

   Synonyms:

   vicinity, locale, area, community

3. a number of persons living near one another or in a particular locality.

   The whole neighborhood was there.

4. neighborly feeling or conduct.

5. nearness; proximity.

   to sense the neighborhood of trouble.

6. Mathematics. an open set that contains a given point.

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idioms

1. in the neighborhood of, approximately; nearly; about.

   She looks to be in the neighborhood of 70.

Etymology

Origin of neighborhood

First recorded in 1400–50, neighborhood is from the late Middle English word neighborehode. See neighbor, -hood

Explanation

Use the noun neighborhood when you're talking about a community within a town or city. Getting to know the people and places in your neighborhood can make you feel right at home in a city of millions. A neighborhood can be created by lines on a map that designate a district, or it can grow over time to become a neighborhood with a certain personality, based on who lives there. You can also use neighborhood to describe something nearby, like promising to visit a friend the next time you are in the neighborhood — or something that's approximate, like a restaurants whose burgers are in the neighborhood of ten dollars.

Example Sentences

Beijing’s latest fines show that controlling the neighborhood also means being responsible for it.

From Barron's • May 23, 2026

Some industry experts say India has many of the ingredients needed to make lightning-fast delivery viable: dense cities, a large labor pool and a vast customer base accustomed to buying daily essentials from neighborhood shops.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 23, 2026

It’s now one of the first religious spaces to reopen in the Pacific Palisades since the fire swept through the neighborhood where more than 70% of its members lived.

From Los Angeles Times • May 20, 2026

Imagine police responding to a robbery by obtaining judicial permission to open every safety deposit box in a neighborhood bank, briefly inspect the contents, and determine afterward which customers seem suspicious.

From Slate • May 20, 2026

I don’t even know Aunt Tess’s neighborhood except as a night-lurker, walking to and from work past shuttered businesses and empty streets.

From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse

Related Words

• area
• block
• district
• parish
• part
• precinct
• region
• section
• street
• suburb
• territory
• zone