plural alleys
1
: a garden or park walk bordered by trees or bushes
2
a(1)
: a grassed enclosure for bowling or skittles
(2)
: a hardwood lane for bowling
also
: a room or building housing a group of such lanes
b
: the space on each side of a tennis doubles court between the sideline and the service sideline
c
: an area in a baseball outfield between two outfielders when they are in normal positions
hit a line drive into the alley
3
: a narrow street
especially
: a thoroughfare through the middle of a block giving access to the rear of lots or buildings
4
: an extensive region where destructive natural phenomena of a specified type (such as tornadoes) occur often or are likely to occur
The most obvious tornado alley extends from the plains of northwest Texas eastward into north Texas and then northward across Oklahoma, Kansas, and eastern Nebraska.—
Tom Konvicka
Tom KonvickaExamples of alley in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Justin Chang, New Yorker, 28 Oct. 2025
Boise police stated that many of the cows found their way to an alley between 18th and 19th streets.
—Shannon Tyler, Idaho Statesman, 28 Oct. 2025
Housed inside a former bowling alley, this colorful cavern of cottons and bolts has become a destination for crafters everywhere.
—Maggie Downs, Travel + Leisure, 27 Oct. 2025
There’s ski-in/ski-out access, of course, but also a 10,000-square-foot spa, a bowling alley, and multiple dining venues.
—Charles Curkin, Vogue, 27 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for alley
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Noun
My own reading led me down a narrower and perhaps less nightmarish alley, but one with cautionary implications of its own.
—Justin Chang, New Yorker, 28 Oct. 2025
Boise police stated that many of the cows found their way to an alley between 18th and 19th streets.
—Shannon Tyler, Idaho Statesman, 28 Oct. 2025
Housed inside a former bowling alley, this colorful cavern of cottons and bolts has become a destination for crafters everywhere.
—Maggie Downs, Travel + Leisure, 27 Oct. 2025
There’s ski-in/ski-out access, of course, but also a 10,000-square-foot spa, a bowling alley, and multiple dining venues.
—Charles Curkin, Vogue, 27 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for alley
Cite this Entry
“Alley.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/alley. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
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