suburbs
City's outer rings
Suburbs are the residential areas surrounding a city, typically characterized by lower density, single-family homes, and car-dependent layouts.
The singular suburb refers to one such community: They moved to a suburb of Chicago.
Suburban life carries connotations of middle-class comfort, uniformity, and distance from urban energy—praised for safety and space, criticized for sprawl and blandness.
Those dwelling nearby
- garage-saleResidential secondhand market
- potluckCommunal meal, shared contributions
- dog-walkingExercising a canine outdoors
- streetlightRoadside illumination fixture
Street closed at end
- detachedApart or uninvolved
- townhouseAttached multi-floor urban residence
- ranch-styleSingle-story home design
- split-levelHouse with offset floors
bungalow · two-story · driveway · garage · backyard · patio · lawn · homeowner
Extend in disorderly fashion
- big-boxLarge-format retail chain
- cookie-cutterMold for baked treats
- homogeneousAlike in composition throughout
- gentrificationWealthy influx displacing locals
McMansion · Levittown · middle-class · consumerism · soulless · bland · monotonous
Boundary or outer region
- fringeOutermost edge or margin
- edgeBoundary or sharpness
- sprawlExtend in disorderly fashion
- satelliteOrbiting celestial body
hinterland · greenbelt · beltway · subdivision · development · tract · expansion · zone
Places of learning
- playgroundChildren's outdoor recreation space
- minivanMultipurpose family vehicle
- barbecueSlow-cook over coals
- playdateScheduled time for children's socializing
recreation · children · pets · bicycle · safety · parenting · trick-or-treat · backyard
Free from disturbance
- tranquilCalm and untroubled
- sleepyWanting to doze
- idyllicPerfectly peaceful and charming
- manicuredCarefully trimmed and tended
orderly · safe · secluded · tree-lined · leafy · placid · serene · calm
Movement along routes
- congestionExcessive accumulation causing blockage
- highwayMajor road for travel
- expresswayLimited-access highway
- interchangeReciprocal transfer between parties
rush-hour · carpool · park-and-ride · transit · bus · train · metro · platform
neighbors
Those dwelling nearby
- garage-saleResidential secondhand market
- potluckCommunal meal, shared contributions
- dog-walkingExercising a canine outdoors
streetlight · sidewalk · cul-de-sac · cookie-cutter · conformity
cul-de-sac
Street closed at end
- detachedApart or uninvolved
- townhouseAttached multi-floor urban residence
- ranch-styleSingle-story home design
split-level · bungalow · two-story · driveway · garage · backyard · patio · lawn · homeowner · HOA
sprawl
Extend in disorderly fashion
- big-boxLarge-format retail chain
- cookie-cutterMold for baked treats
- homogeneousAlike in composition throughout
gentrification · McMansion · Levittown · middle-class · consumerism · soulless · bland · monotonous
periphery
Boundary or outer region
satellite · hinterland · greenbelt · beltway · subdivision · development · tract · expansion · zone · vicinity
schools
Places of learning
- playgroundChildren's outdoor recreation space
- minivanMultipurpose family vehicle
- barbecueSlow-cook over coals
playdate · recreation · children · pets · bicycle · safety · parenting · trick-or-treat · backyard · curfew
peaceful
Free from disturbance
manicured · orderly · safe · secluded · tree-lined · leafy · placid · serene · calm · undisturbed
traffic
Movement along routes
- congestionExcessive accumulation causing blockage
- highwayMajor road for travel
- expresswayLimited-access highway
interchange · rush-hour · carpool · park-and-ride · transit · bus · train · metro · platform · passenger
- 20th CenturyWorld War I aftermath, Cuban Missile Crisis, atomic bomb, New Deal, Nazi Germany
- 1950sEisenhower, poodle skirt, Elvis Presley, Rosa Parks, baby boom
- American landscapeprairies, plains, Great Plains, heartland, Midwest
- outskirtsperiphery, outskirt, fringe, environs, edge
- settlementsvillage, cities, hamlet, city, towns
- suburbiaburbs, subdivision, subdivisions, cul-de-sac, tract homes
suburbsdowntown
Central business district
city center · inner city · urban core · central business district · centre
suburbscountryside
Rural area beyond towns
rural areas · farmland · wilderness · hinterland · backcountry
suburbsmetropolis
Large important city
big city · concrete jungle · city life · ghetto · skid row
- suburban trainsLocal rail transit
- suburban parksRecreational land in residential zones
- leafy suburbs
- suburban lifeResidential outskirts dwelling
- suburban homeResidence in outlying neighborhoods
- suburban BostonTowns surrounding the city
suburb, suburban, suburbia, suburbanite, suburbanites, suburbanization, suburbanizing, suburbanized