Words / A1

NAR-oh/ˈnærəʊ/

Narrow means a small distance from side to side: a narrow road, a narrow bridge. Wide is the opposite. Thin is about the thing itself (thin paper), not the gap between sides. A narrow escape means you were almost hurt — later idiom.

Meaning

Measuring a small distance from one side to the other; not wide.

Examples

• “The street is too narrow for a bus.”
• “The stairs are too narrow for the sofa.”
• “Drive slowly on this narrow lane.”

Good to know

narrow road/bridge. Opposite: wide. Contrast: thin (the object, not the gap).

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