street

American  

[street] / strit /

noun

• streets
  plural

1. a public thoroughfare, usually paved, in a village, town, or city, including the sidewalk or sidewalks.

   Synonyms:

   concourse, roadway

2. such a thoroughfare together with adjacent buildings, lots, etc..

   Houses, lawns, and trees composed a very pleasant street.

3. the roadway of such a thoroughfare, as distinguished from the sidewalk.

   to cross a street.

4. a main way or thoroughfare, as distinguished from a lane, alley, or the like.

5. the inhabitants or frequenters of a street.

   The whole street gossiped about the new neighbors.

6. Informal. the Street,

   1. the section of a city associated with a given profession or trade, especially when concerned with business or finance, as Wall Street.

   2. the principal theater and entertainment district of any of a number of U.S. cities.

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adjective

1. of, on, or adjoining a street.

   a street door just off the sidewalk.

2. taking place or appearing on the street.

   street fight; street musicians.

3. coarse; crude; vulgar.

   street language.

4. suitable for everyday wear.

   street clothes; street dress.

5. retail.

   the street price of a new computer; the street value of a drug.

idioms

1. on / in the street,

   1. without a home.

      You'll be out on the street if the rent isn't paid.

   2. without a job or occupation; idle.

   3. out of prison or police custody; at liberty.

2. up one's street, alley.

street British  

/ striːt /

noun

1. 1. (capital when part of a name) a public road that is usually lined with buildings, esp in a town

      Oxford Street

   2. ( as modifier )

      a street directory

2. the buildings lining a street

3. the part of the road between the pavements, used by vehicles

4. the people living, working, etc, in a particular street

5. (modifier) of or relating to the urban counterculture

   street style

   street drug

6. an ordinary or average citizen

7. 1. earning a living as a prostitute

   2. homeless

8. informal superior to, more advanced than, etc

9. informal markedly different

10. informal (just) what one knows or likes best

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verb

1. to outdistance

street More Idioms  

1. see back street; easy street; man in the street; on the street; side street; work both sides of the street.

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Synonym Usage

Street, alley, avenue, boulevard all refer to public ways or roads in municipal areas. A street is a road in a village, town, or city, especially a road lined with buildings. An alley is a narrow street or footway, especially at the rear of or between rows of buildings or lots. An avenue is properly a prominent street, often one bordered by fine residences and impressive buildings, or with a row of trees on each side. A boulevard is a beautiful, broad street, lined with rows of stately trees, especially used as a promenade. In some cities street and avenue are used interchangeably, the only difference being that those running one direction (say, north and south) are given one designation and those crossing them are given the other.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• interstreet
  adjective
• streetless
  adjective
• streetlike
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• streets
  plural

Etymology

Origin of street

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English strēt, strǣt; cognate with Dutch straat, German Strasse; all ultimately from Latin (via) strāta “paved (road)”; see stratum

Explanation

A street is a paved road with houses or buildings along the side. Cars, buses, bikes, and motorcycles travel in the street, while pedestrians use the sidewalk. The street is what you drive a car on, but the word can also refer more generally to the neighborhood around the street, as in street theater or street fashion. And it can also mean a slightly dangerous, crime-filled environment: "It's rough out there on the street." In Old English, the word was stret, from the Late Latin phrase via strata or "paved road."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

street streets

What’s the strangest story you have about someone recognizing you on the street?

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 11, 2026

John Guoth, a resident of Navarre, Florida, told the BBC that he and his wife will remain in their home despite the rest of his street having already left.

From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2026

They found their son down the street, Mr. Anderson writes, “alone and crying.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026

From the start, when Jeremy runs into Lowen on the street before they meet at Verity’s publisher’s office, Hartnett makes Jeremy’s presence feel dubious.

From Salon ● Oct. 9, 2026

I hurried down the street to the bookseller one wintry afternoon, bought a whole new set of ledgers, and started in to impose method on madness.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

They are in our homes, on our doorsteps and along our streets.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 11, 2026

On a busy, sunny weekend close to Okinawa's capital Naha, life seemed normal as tourists and Americans who appeared to be from the military packed beaches and shopping streets.

From Barron's ● Oct. 11, 2026

More than 900 of the self-driving taxis now roam the streets here, doing the work of thousands of human drivers and posing what many analysts consider a threat to ride-share platforms—and drivers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026

High surf battered parts of Huntington Beach, resulting in localized flooding on streets in the Sunset Beach area.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2026

Emma and I decided to start handing out flyers on the main drag and then wind through all the little side streets I haven’t explored yet.

From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller

Related Words

• avenue
• boulevard
• court
• highway
• lane
• pavement
• place
• road
• roadway
• route
• thoroughfare
• track
• trail