Refers to a town or local area where people live; 町 is especially usual for this sense, including administrative or neighborhood-like units.
There are many old temples in this town.
同じ町に住んでいるのに、彼とはほとんど会わない。
Even though we live in the same neighborhood, I hardly ever see him.
downtown; main street; busy urban area
Only when written 街
Written 街; often suggests the lively commercial or central part of a town or city rather than an administrative town.
週末になると、若者が街に集まる。
On weekends, young people gather downtown.
夕方の街は買い物客でにぎわっていた。
The streets downtown were crowded with shoppers in the evening.
street; road; streets of a town
Used for the streets or roads as a townscape, especially in expressions like 町を歩く or 街を歩く; it often means moving through the streets rather than along one named road.
雨上がりの街を歩いた。
I walked through the streets after the rain.
夜の町を一人で歩くのは少し怖い。
It is a little scary to walk alone through the streets at night.
My grandparents have lived in this town for a long time.
On weekends the downtown area bustles with tourists.
I like walking through the streets alone at night.
He left his hometown for work.
町 is the ordinary word for a town or town area, whereas 巷 in the sense of streets or quarters sounds more literary or old-fashioned.
townscape; streetscape; look of a street
castle town
country town; rural town
port town; harbor town
sponsors of rikishi or their stables
machiya; traditional wooden townhouse · tradesman's house; merchant's house; merchant's family
outskirts of a town; edge of town; just outside the city limits
street; road in a town
Edo-period town magistrate
Muromachi period (1336-1573)
physician in private practice; local doctor · town doctor (historical); doctor serving commoners
women's pavilion; consorts' hall
the whole town; all over town; throughout the town
town doctor; local doctor
machi-yakko; townsman vigilantes
town girl; girl raised in a town
local lawyer; community lawyer; town lawyer
town area; townspeople's district
public bath in a town or city