# What is the name of the grassy strip between the sidewalk and the street? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 23, 2007, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070 "2007-06-23T00:40:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Ronald\_C.Semone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/cc9497/32.png) [@Ronald\_C.Semone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ronald_C.Semone)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070/1 "2007-06-23T00:40:02Z")
When I was a kid, we called it the “parkin”. I don’t know if that was a regional name (Massachusetts) or a time-specific name (1940s), but I haven’t heard it in about 50 years until the other day I ran across the word, used in the sense I have mentioned, in a book written in the 1930s. But on the other hand, I haven’t heard any word used to refer to that strip of grass. What is it called today? ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070/2 "2007-06-23T00:41:57Z")
I read a list of terms for this in a college linguistics class, including “the devil’s highway”. We always called it “the grassy strip between the sidewalk and the street”. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![medstar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f07891/32.png) [@medstar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/medstar)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070/3 "2007-06-23T01:06:55Z")
Could it be “median”? ---
**Author:** ![Ronald\_C.Semone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/cc9497/32.png) [@Ronald\_C.Semone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ronald_C.Semone)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070/4 "2007-06-23T01:11:05Z")
[QUOTE=medstar] Could it be “median”? [/QUOTE] No, I always taken “median” to mean the grassy area in the middle of the road separating the lanes going one way from the lanes going the other way. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070/5 "2007-06-23T01:11:25Z")
I’ve heard it called a “Nuisance Strip.” ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070/6 "2007-06-23T01:19:13Z")
I’ve heard it refered to as “the easement.” You were responsible for its mowing and upkeep, but the city could do with it what it wanted. ---
**Author:** ![David\_Simmons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9de053/32.png) [@David\_Simmons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_Simmons)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070/7 "2007-06-23T01:19:30Z")
Where I came from it was called a terrace. According to Merriam-Webster that’s not strictly accurate but it’s close enough. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070/8 "2007-06-23T01:35:14Z")
[QUOTE=silenus] I’ve heard it refered to as “the easement.” You were responsible for its mowing and upkeep, but the city could do with it what it wanted. [/QUOTE] An [easement](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Easement) is a general term for any area of a property which gives usage rights to an entity other than the property owner. It is not specific to the area between a sidewalk and the street; that area is also not necessarily an easement. ---
**Author:** ![brazil84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8491ac/32.png) [@brazil84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brazil84)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070/9 "2007-06-23T01:39:43Z")
I’ve heard it referred to as a “berm” [http://alt-usage-english.org/excerpts/fxwhatdo.html](http://alt-usage-english.org/excerpts/fxwhatdo.html) ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070/10 "2007-06-23T01:40:57Z")
This is one of those items that does not have one single term in general use, but a host of regionalisms. Around here it is called the “tree lawn.” [Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tree_lawn) gives a few other terms. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070/11 "2007-06-23T01:56:17Z")
We call it the “boulevard”. The grassy strip between the lanes is a “median”. This usage of “boulevard” is separate but related to “Boulevard” in the name of a street; but a Boulevard is supposed to be a fancy street that has medians and boulevards. Around here, a “berm” is an artificial mound of earth, often long and narrow and used to hide an industrial site or serve as a noise barrier. We also speak of berming the rear wall of an earth-sheltered house: piling dirt up against it to protect it from the weather. ---
**Author:** ![Sarahfeena](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sarahfeena/32/519_2.png) [@Sarahfeena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sarahfeena)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070/12 "2007-06-23T02:19:16Z")
In my house we call it the “parkway,” but I have no idea why, or if that’s the right term for it. ---
**Author:** ![KCB615](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ea666f/32.png) [@KCB615](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KCB615)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070/13 "2007-06-23T02:28:52Z")
I’ve heard it called the “gore,” for what that’s worth. ---
**Author:** ![kambuckta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/53a042/32.png) [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070/14 "2007-06-23T02:28:55Z")
In Australia (at least in Melbourne anyway) it’s called a ‘nature strip’ and although the land is owned by the local municipal council/shire, you are responsible for mowing and keeping the land tidy. In many streets the council also plants trees and shrubs on the nature-strip and in that case, _they_ are liable for the maintenance and pruning of the trees. ---
**Author:** ![Brainiac4](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brainiac4/32/3534_2.png) [@Brainiac4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brainiac4)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070/15 "2007-06-23T02:35:15Z")
In Minnesota, it’s a “boulevard” – guess we’re close to Canada linguistically, not just geographically. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Duality](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.duality/32/4098_2.png) [@Mr.Duality](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Duality)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070/16 "2007-06-23T02:40:52Z")
In the lawn care industry it’s sometimes called “hell strip” because it can be more difficult to mow than the rest of the lawn. ---
**Author:** ![A.R.Cane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ee7513/32.png) [@A.R.Cane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A.R.Cane)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070/17 "2007-06-23T02:42:51Z")
No civil engineers here? I think it’s commonly referred to as a “planting strip” by planners and builders. ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070/18 "2007-06-23T02:58:18Z")
> [@](#): > > [**What do you call the area of grass between the sidewalk and the road?**](http://cfprod.imt.uwm.edu/Dept/FLL/linguistics/dialect/staticmaps/q_60.html) > a. berm (4.01%) > b. parking (1.75%) > c. tree lawn (1.92%) > d. terrace (0.73%) > e. curb strip (8.65%) > f. beltway (0.17%) > g. verge (2.56%) > h. I have no word for this (67.92%) > i. other (12.30%) > (10589 respondents) CMC fnord! ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070/19 "2007-06-23T03:25:38Z")
It’s the tree lawn. All the other words mean something different. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070/20 "2007-06-23T03:28:51Z")
I don’t have one anymore. I ripped up the grass and put in lava rocks. Minimal maintenance. Looks better, too. It’s my lava garden. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-name-of-the-grassy-strip-between-the-sidewalk-and-the-street/409070.md?page=2)