Meaning & use
neighbor
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
A person who lives very close to you, especially in the next house or apartment.
Grammar: Countable: you can say 'a neighbor', 'two neighbors', 'my neighbors'.
Patterns
- my neighbor
- a neighbor of mine
- next-door neighbor
Our neighbor helped us carry the groceries upstairs.
She invited all her neighbors to a barbecue in the backyard.
The neighbors in the apartment above us are very quiet.
nouncountable
A person or country that is near another, especially in a formal or political context.
Grammar: Often used for countries or organizations that are close to each other.
Patterns
- a neighboring country
- our neighbors to the north
Canada is a neighbor of the United States.
The two countries have been friendly neighbors for many years.
Japan and South Korea are neighbors across the sea.
verbtransitive
To be located next to something or to live close to someone.
Grammar: Takes an object: 'The park neighbors the school.'
Patterns
- neighbor something
- neighbor on something
The new library neighbors the city hall.
Their farm neighbors ours, so we share a fence.
The hotel neighbors a busy train station.
Word forms
| plural | neighbors |
|---|---|
| third person singular | neighbors |
| past tense | neighbored |
| past participle | neighbored |
| -ing form | neighboring |
Common combinations
- next-door neighbor
- Our next-door neighbor has a friendly dog.
- a good neighbor
- He is a good neighbor who always helps when you need him.
- neighbor across the street
- The neighbor across the street waves at us every morning.
- talk to a neighbor
- I talked to a neighbor about the broken streetlight.
- neighboring country
- Many people travel to the neighboring country for work.
Synonyms and how they differ
Word family
- neighborhood noun
- The area around your home and the people living there.
- neighboring adjective
- Located next to or very near something.
- neighborly adjective
- Friendly and helpful toward people who live near you.
Commonly confused: neighbor or neighbour?
neighbor vs neighbour
This is the British spelling of the same word. Use 'neighbor' in American English and 'neighbour' in British English.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'neighbor' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Neighbor' is a countable noun, so 'my neighbor' can be the subject of a singular verb. 'My neighbor are' is wrong because 'neighbor' is singular here. 'The neighbor of mine is a country' confuses a person with a country. 'We neighbor to the park' is wrong because the verb 'neighbor' does not take 'to' in this sense.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “neighbor”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.