parkway

parkway — noun

1. a large road for cars, often split down the middle by a green strip with bushes

1.nounC1
Definition

a large road for cars, often split down the middle by a green strip with bushes or trees, and lined with more greenery along each edge for a pleasant view.

Example

Maya drove her grandmother along the parkway to admire the autumn maple leaves.

collocation: drive along the parkway

The new Boston parkway has wide grass strips and tall oak trees on both sides.

typical description: grass + trees on both sides

Common collocations
  • scenic parkway
  • drive along the parkway
  • exit the parkway
  • parkway entrance
  • mountain parkway
Synonyms
  • boulevard

    a wide city street with trees, often inside a town rather than between towns

  • avenue

    a wide street with trees, usually in a city, narrower than a parkway

  • scenic route

    a road chosen for its views; broader term, not always landscaped on purpose

Antonyms
  • alley

    a narrow passage between buildings, the opposite of a wide landscaped road

Grammar Patterns

a parkway

the parkway

along the parkway

Usage Note

Mainly American English; often appears in proper names of specific roads (for example, Blue Ridge Parkway, Garden State Parkway). Distinguished from 'highway' or 'freeway' by the deliberate landscaping and the usual ban on commercial trucks.

Common Mistakes

I parked my car in the parkway.
I parked my car on the parkway.
a parkway is a road, not a parking area, despite the name.
Trucks use the parkway every morning to deliver goods.
Trucks use the highway every morning to deliver goods.
most parkways ban commercial trucks; use 'highway' or 'freeway' for truck routes.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All four words name a road, but the differences matter when you choose one. A parkway is mainly an American term for a wide, deliberately landscaped road that connects towns or runs through scenic areas; trees and grass are part of the design, and trucks are usually banned. A boulevard is a wide city street, also lined with trees, but it sits inside a town and carries shops, traffic lights, and pedestrians. An avenue is narrower and almost always urban, often used in addresses (Fifth Avenue). A highway is purely functional: speed and capacity matter, scenery does not. So you would say 'We took the parkway up to the lake for a relaxed Sunday drive' but 'We took the highway because we were in a hurry.'

parkway ↗boulevard ↗avenue ↗highway ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • parkway exit
  • parkway entrance
  • parkway tolls

Phrases

  • drive down the parkway
  • take the parkway
  • the scenic parkway

Prepositions

  • on the parkway
  • along the parkway
  • off the parkway

Etymology

English (park)Old English (weg, 'way')American English (parkway)

Formed in late 19th-century American English by joining 'park' and 'way'. The first parkways were carriage roads built to link city parks, with green strips on both sides so the drive itself felt like part of the park. Designers such as Frederick Law Olmsted, who shaped New York's Central Park, helped spread the idea. As cars replaced carriages, the word kept its meaning of a road planned for pleasant travel, not just speed.