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市街地 (しがいち) Japanese meaning | Kotomora
Common word Freq. Frequency Top 20,000 Meanings 1
noun
urban area ; built-up area ; town area
Refers to a developed, densely built-up part of a city or town, as opposed to rural or suburban outskirts. Often used in planning, disaster prevention, and real estate contexts.
辺あた
り
は
昔むかし
は
田た
んぼ
だっ
た
が
、
今いま
は
すっかり
市し
街がい
地ち
に
なっ
た
。
This area used to be rice paddies, but now it has completely become a built-up area.
Similar words 都と 会かい 都会 refers to a big city in a general, often cultural sense, while 市街地 specifically means the physically developed urban zone.
街まち 中なか 街中 is a more casual term for 'downtown' or 'in the streets', whereas 市街地 is a formal, planning-oriented term.
Etymology Compound of 市 (city, market) + 街 (street, town) + 地 (land, area). The reading is on'yomi throughout.
