corridor

noun

cor·​ri·​dor ˈkȯr-ə-dər 

ˈkär-, 

-ˌdȯr 

1

a

: a passageway (as in a hotel or office building) into which compartments or rooms open

b

: a place or position in which especially political power is wielded through discussion and deal-making

was excluded from the corridors of power after losing the election

2

: a usually narrow passageway or route: such as

a

: a narrow strip of land through foreign-held territory

b

: a restricted lane for air traffic

c

: a land path used by migrating animals

3

a

: a densely populated strip of land including two or more major cities

… the Northeast corridor stretching from Washington into New England …

—S. D. Browne

b

: an area or stretch of land identified by a specific common characteristic or purpose

a corridor of liberalism

the city's industrial corridor

Synonyms of corridor

• region
• neck
• land
• part(s)

Examples of corridor in a Sentence

They pushed me down the hospital corridor to the operating room.

A corridor of land lies between the two mountain ranges.

Recent Examples on the Web

Brooklyn has tried to focus retail and service businesses along its Route 6 corridor, but the appeal for new market-rate housing is often strongest in outlying areas of fields, woods or former farmland. — Don Stacom, Hartford Courant, 20 Aug. 2026

The Freedom 250 Grand Prix will take over the corridors of American power this weekend, the result of more than a year of political maneuvering and design ingenuity. — Adam Kilgore, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2026

The candidates also clashed over a state law encouraging greater housing density around transit corridors. — Barnini Chakraborty, The Washington Examiner, 20 Aug. 2026

Observed ship traffic through the oil corridor remains low due to security concerns for vessels. — Glenn Taylor, Footwear News, 20 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

earlier "covered passageway, path surrounding fortifications," borrowed from French, borrowed from regional Italian (by-form of Tuscan corridoio), from correre "to run" (going back to Latin currere) + -idore, going back to Latin -i-tōrium (from -i- -i- + -tōrium, suffix of place, from neuter of -tōrius, adjective derivative of -tōr-, -tor, agent suffix) — more at current entry 1

First Known Use

1777, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

corridor

noun

cor·​ri·​dor ˈkȯr-əd-ər 

ˈkär-, 

-ə-ˌdȯ(ə)r

1

: a passageway (as in a school) into which compartments or rooms open

2

: a narrow strip of land especially through territory held by an enemy

Etymology

from early French corridor "passageway," from early Italian corridore (same meaning), from correre "to run," from Latin currere "to run" — related to course, current