横丁・横町|よこちょうyokochou[0]heiban (flat)

1. nounbystreet; side street; back street; alley; lane
   この横町よこちょうは人ひとの通とおりが多おおい。↗

   This cross street is busy with pedestrian traffic.

• Synonym路地ろじNeutralA narrow lane between buildings, stressing the passage itself; 「横丁」 is a street turned into from a main street, together with the area along it.
• Synonym小路こうじNeutralThe same word as 「小道」 above, also written 「小路」: a narrow path or lane in general; unlike 「横丁」, the word itself says nothing about branching off a main street.
• Synonym巷路WrittenWritten/formal and very rare, with a Sino-Japanese flavor; for streets and alleys in daily speech, say 「横丁」 or 「路地」.
• Related小道こみちNeutralA narrow path, often in the countryside or a garden; it need not link to a main street, whereas 「横丁」 is a street you turn into from one.
• Related細道ほそみちNeutralA long, narrow path, as in 「奥の細道」; carries a literary, evocative nuance.
• Related小径しょうけいWrittenWritten/formal prose for a small path, often through woods or gardens but also small streets; it does not suggest any position off a main street.
• Related小みちNeutral「こみち」 written in mixed kanji and kana; same meaning as 「小道」, with a slightly literary feel.
• Related狭い道NeutralAn ordinary descriptive phrase for any narrow road, used freely in everyday speech; it does not single out a street leading off a main one.
• Antonym大通りおおどおりNeutralA main street or boulevard through town — the direct opposite of a small 「横丁」.
• Antonym表通りおもてどおりNeutralThe main street of an area as opposed to a back street; 「横丁」 is the kind of side street behind or off it.

Use 「横丁」 for a small street turned into from a main road and the area along it, as in 「飲み屋横丁」. A narrow passage between buildings is 「路地」; a small path is 「小道」; the main street is 「大通り」 or 「表通り」. 「狭い道」 plainly describes any narrow road; the rest are rare, written, or literary.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

1. 表ひょうの通とおりから横よこに入はいった道みちやそれに沿そった街まち。横町よこちょう。