subway
Americannoun
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subways
plural
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especially British, tube, underground. an underground electric railroad, usually in a large city.
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Chiefly British. a short tunnel or underground passageway for pedestrians, automobiles, etc.; underpass.
verb (used without object)
noun
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an underground passage or tunnel enabling pedestrians to cross a road, railway, etc
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an underground passage or tunnel for traffic, electric power supplies, etc
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an underground railway
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of subway
Explanation
An underground transportation system on rails is called a subway. New York City's subway system has more stations than any other subway in the world. In most large cities, the subway is a good way to get where you need to go. Subways have many different local names, from the BART in San Francisco to the Métro in Paris to the U-Bahn in Berlin. Before subway came to mean "underground railway," it meant "underground passage for water pipes." And if you ask where the subway is in London, you'll be directed to an underground walkway, which is what subway means in the U.K.
Vocabulary lists containing subway
October Words
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Unit 5
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Transportation
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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.
See Examples For:
He proudly showed off the metal sign he just bought, marked "Penn Station," the subway stop for Madison Square Garden -- the arena where his beloved Knicks basketball team plays.
From Barron's ● Oct. 11, 2026
The iconic orange plastic seats from the New York subway go for around $900 each.
From Barron's ● Oct. 11, 2026
By 2013, then-Macy’s Plaza had devolved into a dated, downscale relic that got little love despite its location near offices, hotels and a busy subway interchanget.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026
In Zvirynets—once the hunting grounds of medieval princes, now a leafy upscale neighborhood—residents hurry to the subway station.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026
Danny had only been on the subway one time and certainly not in the evening.
From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova
Some had taken two subways from Brooklyn to reach the ferry in Manhattan, chaperoned by playworkers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026
Fans by the hundreds take over streets and subways and sports bars, expressing generally well-behaved passion for their teams and countries.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 22, 2026
With newly safe streets and subways, New York roared back to life.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 8, 2026
What sets robotaxis apart is the privacy it offers that can’t be found on crowded subways or even in a traditional taxicab.
From MarketWatch ● Dec. 24, 2025
“I grew up surrounded by concrete and brick, crowded freeways. People everywhere in cars, on buses, subways, trains.”
From "Paradise on Fire" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
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.
