A driveway is a private road that connects a public street to someone's house or garage. It's the paved or gravel path where families park their cars, and it belongs to the property owner rather than the city.

Most driveways are just wide enough for one or two cars, though some larger properties have circular driveways that loop around in front of the house. In winter, people shovel snow from their driveways so they can get their cars in and out. In summer, kids might use the driveway as a basketball court or a place to practice skateboarding tricks.

The word feels a bit odd when you think about it: you don't actually drive on your driveway much since it's so short, while you park on the parkway, which is a strip of grass beside the road. This curious flip has puzzled English speakers for years, but the word driveway stuck anyway.