plaza

noun

pla·​za ˈplä-zə  ˈpla- 

1

a

: a public square in a city or town

b

: an open area usually located near urban buildings and often featuring walkways, trees and shrubs, places to sit, and sometimes shops

2

: a place on a thoroughfare (such as a turnpike) at which all traffic must temporarily stop (as to pay tolls)

3

: an area adjacent to an expressway which has service facilities (such as a restaurant, gas station, and restrooms)

4

: shopping center

Examples of plaza in a Sentence

They put his statue in the town's plaza.

Recent Examples on the Web

Not much more than a cobblestone plaza lined with restaurants offering potato-and-cheese soupe de chalet, Gruyères is dominated by a 13th-century castle, where tours are on offer. —Betsy Andrews, Bon Appetit Magazine, 10 Apr. 2025

Staff and museum visitors line a plaza, waving American flags and cheering as the women arrive, adorned in the red and white polka dot scarfs that are a signature of Rosie the Riveters. —Debbie Elliott, NPR, 30 Mar. 2025

Breakfast was coffee and tartines with jam on a chic plaza. —Ayşegül Savaş, New Yorker, 30 Mar. 2025

The bar is nestled in an austere plaza behind a Key Foods grocery store, at the base of a 27-story residential building. —Charles W. McFarlane, New York Times, 26 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Spanish, from Latin platea broad street — more at place

First Known Use

1683, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing plaza

• toll plaza

Rhymes for plaza

• causa

Kids Definition

plaza

noun

pla·​za ˈplaz-ə  ˈpläz- 

: a public square in a city or town