11998
I know the following words that all mean a road of some kind:

  * 道
  * 町
  * 街
  * 路
  * 道路
  * 街路
  * 街道
  * 通り
  * 通り道

What's the difference between all these words? I'd assume size would be one of
them, but what is the order if this is true?
CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-05-28T13:09:50.860
11992
2013-05-29T14:43:45.503
2013-05-28T13:48:44.867
1497
1497
question
words usage word-choice
Difference between words for road
There are several that really do not belong.

町 refers to an area, not a road. It refers to a unit of government smaller
than a city (thus probably close to what you call a town.)

通り道 means "on a route to commute/school/wherever you are going to." So when
you use this word, the topic of the conversation is someone and not the road
itself.

街道 refers to long inter-region routes that connected different parts of Japan,
the equivalent of highway system back then. Because of this origin of the
term, it has a scent of history attached to it, so in modern days you can see
[roads named as
街道](http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%97%A5%E6%9C%AC%E3%83%AD%E3%83%9E%E3%83%B3%E3%83%81%E3%83%83%E3%82%AF%E8%A1%97%E9%81%93)
for nobility.

The remaining words have significant overlaps between them, and while some of
them have some neuances that others don't have, I'm not confident if I got the
distinction right, or if such perceived neuances are mine alone or shared.

To me, it's somewhat analogus to asking the differences between Blvd/Ave/St/Rd
distinctions in the U.S. Sure, Blvd sounds wider in general (just like 通り),
but you can find a plenty of counter-examples.
CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-05-29T14:43:45.503
11998
2013-05-29T14:43:45.503
3059
11992
answer