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Glite Dictionary
subway station

subway station

22 1.4
A place where underground trains stop to let people on and off
  • noun
  • /ˈsʌbˌweɪ ˈsteɪʃən/
  • US
translation icon : estación de metro
  • I arrived at the subway station just in time to catch my train.

So there's not a special platform where like a subway station where people tap into a gate and move in.

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Examples

  • Sam rushes madly down a flight of stairs into a subway station.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • At the subway station, there was two cops.

    Takers (2010)

  • Uh, sounds like they went into the subway station.

    Safe (2012)

  • I never go near; I never walk past that subway station.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • I guess I was tired and confused. I went into a subway station and got on a car.

    Fiction book (1999)

  • This is the 23rd Street subway station.

    Godzilla (1998)

  • At night, he slept in parks, on trains, and in subway stations.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • Kate races from the subway station, entering the Arthur Murray Dance Studio.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • The temperature in the subway station was tropical, the humid air heavy with pungent odors.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • The night was quiet as Katya made her way to the subway station. Moonlight showed clouds drifting across the sky.

    Fiction book (2002)

Synonyms

station
vssubway station
∞ 2.0

A building with staff and equipment for a public service, like where trains stop or firefighters work

is specifically an urban underground passenger stop, not any general facility
train station
vssubway station
  • US
69 1.0

A place where trains stop for people and goods to get on and off

focuses on passenger boarding and alighting rather than goods handling
railway station
vssubway station
  • UK
7 1.3

A place where trains stop to pick up and drop off people and goods

is focused on urban underground passenger stops, not long-distance rail services
railroad station
vssubway station
  • US
5 1.5

A place where trains stop to pick up or drop off people and goods

serves only city underground passenger boarding and alighting, not freight
way station
vssubway station
4 3.9

A small stop on a route where people pause before continuing

is a regular urban stop for underground trains, not a minor pause point
calling station
vssubway station
  • UK
4.5

A marked place where buses or trains stop to pick up and drop off passengers

is for urban underground trains only, not for other vehicle types

How Busy

terminal
76 3.5
subway station
  • US
22 1.4
station
∞ 2.0

Surface Forms

subway station singular
subway stations plural

Morphology

subway + station

The meaning 'a place where subway trains stop to pick up or drop off passengers' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'subway' (an underground railway) with 'station' (a transport building or stop). This noun-noun composition follows a common, cross-linguistic pattern, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily understand the MWE.

Etymology

Subway station gets its name from trains that run under the streets. The word subway means 'under' the street and station means a place trains 'stop', so a subway station is a place below ground where people get on and off trains.