subway

American  

[suhb-wey] / ˈsʌbˌweɪ /

noun

subways plural

1. especially British, tube, underground.  an underground electric railroad, usually in a large city.

2. Chiefly British. a short tunnel or underground passageway for pedestrians, automobiles, etc.; underpass.

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verb (used without object)

1. to be transported by a subway.

   We subwayed uptown.

subway British  

/ ˈsʌbˌweɪ /

noun

1. an underground passage or tunnel enabling pedestrians to cross a road, railway, etc

2. an underground passage or tunnel for traffic, electric power supplies, etc

3. an underground railway

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• subways
  plural

Etymology

Origin of subway

First recorded in 1820–30; sub- + way ¹

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.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

subway subways

"I get on the subway with my big bag and go home with my cheap groceries. I mean, I'm so happy. This is amazing," Porter said.

From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026

“They leave everything,” he says, adding that such large items are hazardous if they get on the subway track.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026

I’m a native New Yorker, and if I were living in Brooklyn and a guy lived on the Upper West Side, that would be a 45-minute subway ride, which is truly nothing in New York.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026

Tens of thousands of Kyiv residents have spent nights in the city’s subway during Russia’s recent missile barrages, turning stations into underground towns packed with yoga mats, camping chairs and tents.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 9, 2026

It’s for a skid of porcelain subway tile, for over nineteen hundred dollars.

From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam

Philadelphia’s World Cup host organization said Monday that it will offer free public transit to fans who are traveling home from Lincoln Financial Field via the state’s Septa system, which operates buses, subways and trains.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 21, 2026

She thinks the subways are already dangerous and filthy, and worries about the state of them next year when her oldest child needs to take public transit alone.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 24, 2025

As Rahiem said, “Amiri and I were just projecting our voices over the loud subways coming in and out of the stations,” not knowing at first that they’d become famous.

From Salon ● Sep. 11, 2025

Money raised from the tolls would help bolster funds for its aging subways, which have garnered headlines over the years for massive underground floods during heavy rains.

From BBC ● Feb. 19, 2025

Underground, on the subways, conditions could only be described as chaotic.

From "The Tipping Point" by Malcolm Gladwell

Related Words

• metro
• underground