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

In this antic era, Lost Lambs offers an update on Pynchonesque paranoia, featuring lonely people in anonymous suburbs who get drawn into overlapping conspiracies that crisscross the map. —Niela Orr, Vulture, 13 Jan. 2026

Rents reflected all of that, and many older, long-time residents in modest suburbs seemed stunned to learn of leases starting at $1,500 or $1,600 a month and reaching as high as $3,800 or even $4,000. —Don Stacom, Hartford Courant, 13 Jan. 2026

Questions are swirling in a Greater Boston suburb over why officials shifted away from an ambulance provider that served the community for 25 years, as leaders show resistance in providing answers. —Lance Reynolds, Boston Herald, 12 Jan. 2026

The video shared widely online shows dozens of bodies outside the morgue, which CBS News has geolocated to the southern Tehran suburb of Kahrizak. —Tucker Reals, CBS News, 12 Jan. 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"