Suburban describes areas on the edges of cities where people live in houses with yards, connected by quiet streets and shopping centers. These neighborhoods sit between the crowded downtown of a city and the open farmland of the countryside.

Many suburban families live in single-family houses rather than apartments. Kids often ride bikes around the neighborhood, and many homes have driveways, garages, and backyards with grass. Suburban areas typically have their own schools, libraries, and parks, but people usually need cars to get around since stores and houses spread out more than in cities.

Suburbs grew dramatically in America after World War II, when millions of families moved out of crowded cities to raise children in neighborhoods with more space. Today, more Americans live in suburbs than in either cities or rural areas.

When you see suburban describing something beyond just location, like a suburban lifestyle, it refers to the particular way of life in these communities: relatively quiet, car-dependent, and focused on residential neighborhoods rather than the bustle of city streets or the isolation of farmland.