street ( streets plural )
1 n-count; n-in-names A street is a road in a city, town, or village, usually with houses along it.
He lived at 66 Bingfield Street..., Boppard is a small, quaint town with narrow streets.
2 n-count You can use street or streets when talking about activities that happen out of doors in a town rather than inside a building.
the N, usu on/off N
Changing money on the street is illegal-always use a bank..., Their aim is to raise a million pounds to get the homeless off the streets., ...a New York street gang.
4 If someone is streets aheadof you, they are much better at something than you are.
be streets ahead of sb phrase usu v-link PHR, oft PHR of n
He was streets ahead of the other contestants.
5 If you talk about the man in the street or the man or woman in the street, you mean ordinary people in general.
the man in the street phrase
The average man or woman in the street doesn't know very much about immune disorders.
6 If a job or activity is up your street, it is the kind of job or activity that you are very interested in. (BRIT)
up sb's street phrase usu v-link PHR She loved it, this was just up her street. in AM, use up your alley
back street ( back streets plural ) , back-street, backstreet
1 n-count A back street in a town or city is a small, narrow street with very little traffic.
The small church of San Michel is tucked away in a narrow back street of Port-au-Prince., ...backstreet garages.
2 n-plural The back streets of a town or city are the areas of small, old, poor streets rather than the richer or newer areas.
...the back streets of Berlin.
3 adj Back street activities are carried out unofficially, secretly, and often illegally.
...back street abortions.
People in the armed forces use civvy street to refer to life and work which is not connected with the armed forces.
INFORMAL n-uncount usu prep N
Downing Street is the street in London in which the Prime Minister and the Chancellor of the Exchequer live. You can also use Downing Street to refer to the Prime Minister and his or her officials. n-proper
The Prime Minister arrived back at Downing Street from Paris this morning..., Downing Street is taking the French opinion polls very seriously indeed.
Fleet Street is used to refer to British national newspapers and to the journalists who work for them. n-proper
He was the highest-paid sub-editor in Fleet Street., ...Fleet Street journalists.
high street ( high streets plural )
1 n-count; n-in-names The high street of a town is the main street where most of the shops and banks are.
in AM, use Main Street
2 adj High street banks and businesses are companies which have branches in the main shopping areas of most towns.
(mainly BRIT) ADJ n
The scanners are available from high street stores.
1 n-proper In small towns in the United States, the street where most of the shops are is often called Main Street.
2 n-uncount Main Street is used by journalists to refer to the ordinary people of America who live in small towns rather than big cities or are not very rich.
This financial crisis had a much greater impact on Main Street.
side street ( side streets plural ) A side street is a quiet, often narrow street which leads off a busier street. n-count
street child ( street children plural ) Street children are homeless children who live outdoors in a city and live by begging or stealing. n-count usu pl
street cred , street-cred
If someone says that you have street cred, they mean that ordinary young people would approve of you and consider you to be part of their culture, usually because you share their sense of fashion or their views.
Having children was the quickest way to lose your street cred.
Street credibility is the same as street cred.
(mainly BRIT) n-uncount
Street crime refers to crime such as vandalism, car theft and mugging that are usually committed outdoors. n-uncount
street map ( street maps plural ) A street map is a map of a town or city, showing the positions and names of all the streets. n-count
Street people are homeless people who live outdoors in a town or city. n-plural
street smart , street-smart
Someone who is street smart knows how to deal with difficult or dangerous situations, especially in big cities.
He is street smart and is not afraid of this neighborhood.
You can use street smarts to refer to the skills and intelligence people need to be successful in difficult situations, especially in a city.
The boys learned their street smarts early.
The street value of a drug is the price that is paid for it when it is sold illegally to drug users. (JOURNALISM) n-sing usu N of amount
...cocaine with a street value of two million pounds.
Wall Street is a street in New York where the Stock Exchange and important banks are. Wall Street is often used to refer to the financial business carried out there and to the people who work there. (BUSINESS) n-proper
On Wall Street, stocks closed at their second highest level today..., Wall Street seems to be ignoring other indications that consumers are spending less.