alley

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a narrow road or passage, especially between or behind buildings

   The delivery entrance is halfway down the alley.

2. 2
   noun

   a path in a garden or park, often bordered by rows of trees or bushes

   They followed a shaded alley through the formal garden.

3. 3
   noun

   a long narrow lane or area used in a sport, especially the lane down which a bowling ball is rolled

   The ball rolled straight down the center of the alley.

From Middle English aleye, from Anglo-Norman aleie, the feminine past participle of aler ("to go"), source of French aller. Its earliest sense was a place for walking or passage; urban and sporting senses developed from that narrow-path idea. Doublet of allée.

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