noun · neutral
suburb
UK/ˈsʌbɜːb/US/ˈsʌbɝb/SUB·urb
Band 4-5speakingtask2
an area where people live outside the centre of a city
Examples
“They bought a house in a quiet suburb.”
“Many families prefer the suburbs for more space.”
“The suburb is well connected by train to the city.”
Band 8 sentence
“Although the suburb is a twenty‑minute train ride from the centre, it offers a much quieter lifestyle for families.”
Collocations
- outer suburbs
- suburban area
- move to the suburbs
Word family
suburb nounsuburban adjective
Common mistakes
I live in suburbs.→I live in the suburbs.
They moved to the countryside suburb.→They moved to a suburb.
Say it for a higher band
5edge of the city→6residential area→7+suburb
Synonyms
outskirts
residential area
Easily confused
countryside
“She enjoys weekends in the countryside away from city noise.”
Related words
Learn this word with the rest of its set, and get reminded at the right time.
In City & Urban life
Learn it with its set