Phrase guide

asphalt jungle

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

A city or urban area, where the landscape is covered by pavement and the environment is alienating and unsafe.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: idiomatic

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From W. R. Burnett's novel The Asphalt Jungle (1949).

Across languages

Translations

6 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Finnish: asfalttiviidakko — type of urban area
  • Polish: asfaltowa dżungla — type of urban area
  • Russian: ка́менные джу́нгли (kámennyje džúngli) — type of urban area
  • Serbo-Croatian: градска џунгла — type of urban area
  • Spanish: jungla de asfalto — type of urban area
  • Swedish: asfaltdjungel — type of urban area