suburb

noun

sub·​urb ˈsə-ˌbərb 

1

a

: an outlying part of a city or town

b

: a smaller community adjacent to or within commuting distance of a city

c

suburbs plural : the residential area on the outskirts of a city or large town

2

suburbs plural : the near vicinity : environs

suburban

sə-ˈbər-bən 

adjective or noun

suburbanite

sə-ˈbər-bə-ˌnīt 

noun

Did you know?

The Suburbs vs. the Urbs

Given that most of the common words in our language beginning sub- tend to have meanings concerned with “beneath” (as in subterranean and submarine) or “less than” (as with subpar), you would be forgiven for assuming that the suburbs were so named because of their location below, or their status as less than, their urban counterparts. Not so, however: sub- may have other meanings at the beginning of a word; in this case, it indicates not depth or inferiority, but proximity. In other words, the suburbs are a region close to the urbs.

Is urbs an English word? Yes; it is rarely used, but it refers typically to a city, particularly when distinguished from a suburb.

Examples of suburb in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Ward, 29, grew up in the Cleveland suburb of Macedonia and attended Nordonia High School and Ohio State University. — Zack Meisel, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2026

Meet Chicago Northwest represents eight Northwest suburbs, including Medinah neighbors Itasca and Roselle, noted its President & CEO Heather Larson. — Eric Peterson, Chicago Tribune, 8 Sep. 2026

As a major commuting town in the New York City suburbs, Greenwich was hard hit; 32 people with ties to the town were killed in the attacks. — Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 6 Sep. 2026

In Arizona last year, 35-year-old Robb Hintzsche pleaded no contest to two counts of second-degree murder in a crash that killed a Lyft driver, her passenger and the passenger’s dog in the Phoenix suburb of Gilbert. — Amanda Lee Myers, USA Today, 4 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English suburbe, from Anglo-French, from Latin suburbium, from sub- near + urbs city — more at sub-

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

suburb

noun

sub·​urb ˈsəb-ˌərb 

1

a

: a part of a city or town near its outer edge

b

: a smaller community close to a city

2

plural : the area of homes close to or surrounding a city

suburban

sə-ˈbər-bən 

adjective or noun

Etymology

Middle English suburb "part around the outer edge of a city," from early French (same meaning), from Latin suburbium (same meaning), from sub "under, close to" and urbs "city"