Stratford-on-avon

//ˈstɹætfə(ɹ)d ɒn ˈeɪvən// name

name ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Proper Noun
  1. 1
    A town in Warwickshire, England, birthplace of William Shakespeare. Often used as a byword for a particularly idyllic or historic town.

    "Nuneaton was not a Stratford on Avon, nor had it a salubrious air."

  2. 2
    A local government district of Warwickshire with its headquarters in the town.

Example

More examples

"Stratford-on-Avon, where Shakespeare was born, is visited by many tourists every year."

Etymology

From being the location of a river ford for a roadway. From Old Welsh avon (“river”) + Old English ford (“ford”) + Old English strǣt (“street”); from Latin strata (“road”). From being a ford for a British Roman road. The ford itself has subsequently been built over, becoming Clopton Bridge. The river itself has subsequently become named River Avon.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.