街道|かいどうkaidou[0]heiban (flat)

1. nounhighway (esp. one existing from the Edo period); main road
   街道かいどう沿そいのドライブインで昼食ちゅうしょくをとった。↗

   We had lunch at a roadside restaurant.
2. nounhighway (e.g. to success); path (to becoming ...)
3. nounsubdistrict (in China)

• Synonym通りとおりNeutralAs a suffix it means 'in accordance with' or 'about', and after place names it forms street names like 「銀座通り」; 「街道」 is mostly used for trunk roads between towns.
• Synonym道みちNeutralThe most general word for a road, also figuratively a way or means; 「街道」 is a trunk road between towns, often with historical flavor, and also used as a road name.
• Synonym道路どうろNeutralThe standard general term for roads and highways, as in 「道路工事」; 「街道」 usually means a trunk road between towns and often carries a historical flavor.
• Related道みちNeutralThe most general word for a road, also figuratively a way or means; 「街道」 is a trunk road between towns, often with historical flavor, and also used as a road name.
• Related経路けいろWrittenA formal word for the route or course something passes through, or the process, as in 「感染経路」; 「街道」 is a concrete trunk road between towns, not a process.
• Related通りどおりNeutralAs a suffix it means 'in accordance with' or 'about', and after place names it forms street names like 「銀座通り」; 「街道」 is mostly used for trunk roads between towns.
• Related途とWritten「途」, a formal written variant of this word, means one's route or journey and appears mostly in compounds like 「帰途」「前途」, rarely alone; 「街道」 is a concrete trunk road.
• Related街路がいろWrittenA formal word for the streets that divide a city into blocks, as in 「街路樹」; 「街道」 focuses on trunk roads between towns, but can also run through urban areas.
• RelatedルートNeutralA loanword for a route or channel, as in 「販売ルート」, focusing on the path taken; 「街道」 is the road itself.
• Related路ちWritten「路」, an old literary writing of this word, now appears mostly as a suffix in words like 「家路」「旅路」 and rarely stands alone; 「街道」 is a standalone trunk-road name.
• Related幹線道路かんせんどうろNeutralThe general term in transport for major roads linking main cities; 「街道」 usually has historical roots and often serves as a road name.
• Related行路こうろWrittenA literary word for travel by road or a journey, also figuratively one's course in life; 「街道」 is a concrete trunk road but can also suggest one's future.
• Related通い路かよいじWrittenA literary, uncommon word for the route one travels back and forth regularly; 「街道」 is a public trunk road between towns.
• Related行き道ゆきみちNeutralThe road you take when going somewhere, as opposed to the return route; 「街道」 is a fixed trunk road with no going/return distinction.
• Antonym裏道うらみちNeutralThe opposite of 「街道」 in prominence: an inconspicuous back street or lane, also a metaphor for unfair means.
• Antonym小道こみちNeutralThe opposite of 「街道」 in width: a narrow path or lane, not a main traffic artery.

Use 「街道」 for trunk roads linking towns and for roads bearing such names, as in 「東海道」. For roads in general pick 「道」 or 「道路」; for streets within a city, 「街路」. For a route or course taken, choose 「ルート」 or 「経路」. The opposites are 「裏道」 and 「小道」.

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

1. （歴史れきし）都市としと都市とし又または宿場町しゅくばまちをつなぐ道路どうろ。
2. 幹線かんせん道路どうろの愛称あいしょう、語義ごぎ1に起源きげんを有ゆうするものが多おおい。