Wall Street

American  

noun

1. a street in New York City, in S Manhattan: the major financial center of the U.S.

2. the money market or the financiers of the U.S.

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Wall Street British  

noun

1. a street in lower Manhattan, New York, where the Stock Exchange and major banks are situated, regarded as the embodiment of American finance

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Wall Street Cultural  

1. A street in New York City on which the New York Stock Exchange and many investment firms are located. The street's name is often used in reference to the activities conducted on it: “Stock prices fell on Wall Street.”

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Etymology

Origin of Wall Street

1820–30, Wall Street for def. 2

Example Sentences

U.S. stock-index futures gained on Sunday, with Wall Street looking to extend last week’s gains.

From MarketWatch • Jul. 5, 2026

As had been reported in The Wall Street Journal, many well-timed option awards weren’t the product of luck, but of a widespread practice known as backdating.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 4, 2026

June’s 57,000 new jobs fell well short of Wall Street forecasts.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 3, 2026

The gains in Asia followed a mixed day on Wall Street, where the Nasdaq sank 0.8 percent but the Dow jumped more than one percent on the last day before a long Independence Day weekend.

From Barron's • Jul. 3, 2026

Wall Street firms—most notably Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers—continued to publish bond market research reaffirming the strength of the market.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis