subway

noun

sub·​way ˈsəb-ˌwā 

: an underground way: such as

a

: a passage under a street (as for pedestrians, power cables, or water or gas mains)

b

: a usually electric underground railway

c

: underpass

subway intransitive verb

Examples of subway in a Sentence

I took the subway to midtown.

No one on the subway seemed to mind how crowded it was.

I've been on both the New York subway and the Underground in London.

Recent Examples on the Web

In October, weekday ridership averaged 938,000 across all of the MBTA’s modes, which include subway, bus, commuter rail, ferry, and paratransit service for people with disabilities. —Colleen Cronin, Boston Herald, 30 Nov. 2025

In our last year of high school, Anya decided that Yasmina should never, ever take the subway anymore. —Joan Silber, New Yorker, 30 Nov. 2025

Potential causes for the tower’s collapse currently being investigated include human error in assembly of the renovation scaffolding or vibrations from deep drilling for the new Metro C subway line, which can regularly be felt and heard throughout the area. —Barbie Latza Nadeau, CNN Money, 25 Nov. 2025

Google Maps can better help with other forms of transportation, such as buses and subways. —PC Magazine, 22 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1822, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing subway

• subway train

Rhymes for subway

• airway
• allay
• archway
• array
• ashtray
• astray
• aue
• away
• ballet
• belay
• beltway
• beret

Kids Definition

subway

noun

sub·​way ˈsəb-ˌwā 

1

: an underground passage

2

: a usually electric underground railway