subway system
17
2.4
- noun
- /ˈsʌbˌweɪ ˈsɪstəm/
- US
:
sistema de metro
- Red Hook is pretty urban, even though it's cut off from the subway system.
- the New York City subway system
- the Tokyo subway system
- the York City subway system
The same thing is true for most modern subway systems.
- The same thing is true for most modern subway systems.
- Why does Manhattan have a good subway system?
- The private sector in Chicago built an illegal underground subway system without the city knowing it.
Examples
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We rarely think about how vital the subway system is to NYC.
Blog text (14) -
The revenue collection of the entire subway system is under my command.
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The chase led through the Boston subway system on foot.
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In Washington, officials closed Metro, the area's subway system, and many office buildings and businesses announced closures.
Blog text (31) -
The critical element in this transformation was the development of an extensive subway system during the early decades of the twentieth century.
Academic text (2006) -
It's the most extensive subway system in the world, encompassing 481.2 rail miles.
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The Washington Metro is actually documented as being safer than subway systems in comparably sized cities.
Blog text (30) -
The New York subway system is known for its efficiency and coverage across the city.
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Many residents rely on the subway system for their daily commute in Tokyo.
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The London subway system, also called the Tube, is one of the oldest in the world.
Synonyms
268
1.0
Underground trains that carry people in a city
50
1.8
An underground train system in a city that carries people
7
3.6
An electric train system that runs below a city's streets
How Big
3
3.2
- US
17
2.4
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly compositional: 'subway' names the underground railway and 'system' denotes a network or collection, so a learner who knows both words can infer it refers to the city's subway network. This noun–noun combination follows a common cross‑linguistic pattern (e.g. 'metro system') and is therefore immediately understandable to B1 learners.
Etymology
The noun subway system may come from old words that mean 'under' and 'way', with sub meaning 'under' and way meaning 'path'. Early trains ran under city streets, so the image of a path below the road explains why subway system now means the network of underground trains people use to travel in a city.