How do you use "Neck of the woods" in a sentence?

What brings you to this neck of the woods? We don't get many tourists in our neck of the woods. Is there a good barbecue place in your neck of the woods?

Neck of the woods

American Slang Term American ★★★★☆ Common informal

Practice this with flashcards, quizzes & audio on WordLoci →

Meaning: A particular area or neighborhood; the region where someone lives.

某个特定的地区或社区；某人居住的地方。

Una zona o barrio en particular; la región donde vive alguien.

特定の地域や近所のこと。誰かが住んでいる界隈。

특정 지역이나 동네. 누군가가 살고 있는 근처.

A folksy, warm way to refer to a geographic area, especially a rural or suburban one. It implies familiarity and belonging. Often used in the question 'What brings you to this neck of the woods?' when someone appears somewhere unexpected.

一种亲切、朴素的方式来指代某个地理区域，特别是乡村或郊区。它暗含着熟悉感和归属感。常用于'什么风把你吹到这儿来了？'这样的问句中，用于某人出现在意想不到的地方。

Una forma coloquial y cálida de referirse a un área geográfica, especialmente rural o suburbana. Implica familiaridad y pertenencia. Se usa a menudo en la pregunta '¿Qué te trae por estos lares?' cuando alguien aparece en un lugar inesperado.

地域、特に田舎や郊外を親しみを込めて指す素朴で温かみのある表現。馴染みや帰属感を暗示する。誰かが思いがけない場所に現れた時に「What brings you to this neck of the woods?（こんなところまでどうしたの？）」と尋ねる形でよく使われる。

지역, 특히 시골이나 교외 지역을 가리키는 소박하고 따뜻한 표현이다. 친숙함과 소속감을 내포한다. 누군가가 예상치 못한 곳에 나타났을 때 'What brings you to this neck of the woods?'라는 질문으로 자주 사용된다.

Examples

What brings you to this neck of the woods?
什么风把你吹到这儿来了？
¿Qué te trae por estos lares?
こんなところまでどうしたの？
이 동네까지 웬일이야?
We don't get many tourists in our neck of the woods.
我们这一带很少有游客来。
No suelen venir muchos turistas por nuestra zona.
うちの界隈にはあまり観光客は来ないんだ。
우리 동네에는 관광객이 별로 안 와.
Is there a good barbecue place in your neck of the woods?
你那边有好吃的烧烤店吗？
¿Hay algún buen sitio de barbacoa por tu zona?
あなたの近所においしいバーベキュー屋さんはある？
네 동네에 괜찮은 바비큐 집 있어?

Pronunciation

Usage Guide

Context: casual conversation, greetings

Tone: friendly, folksy

✓ Do Say

What are you doing in my neck of the woods?
你来我们这片儿干什么？
¿Qué haces por mi zona?
うちの界隈で何してるの？
내 동네에서 뭐 하는 거야?
There's nothing like that around our neck of the woods.
我们那一带没有那种店。
Por nuestros lares no hay nada parecido.
うちの近所にはそういうのはないよ。
우리 동네에는 그런 거 없어.

✗ Don't Say

It sounds overly rural in very urban settings — a New Yorker referring to Manhattan as their 'neck of the woods' would sound ironic
在非常城市化的环境中使用会显得过于乡土气——一个纽约人把曼哈顿称为自己的'neck of the woods'会有讽刺的味道
Suena demasiado rural en entornos muy urbanos — un neoyorquino refiriéndose a Manhattan como su 'zona' sonaría irónico
都会的な場面では田舎くさく聞こえる——ニューヨーカーがマンハッタンを「neck of the woods」と呼ぶと皮肉に聞こえる
매우 도시적인 환경에서는 지나치게 시골스럽게 들린다 — 뉴요커가 맨해튼을 자기 'neck of the woods'라고 하면 아이러니하게 들릴 것이다

Origin & History

From colonial America, where 'neck' referred to a narrow strip of land (a geographic term from Middle English). Early settlers used it to describe their isolated areas within forests and wilderness.

Cultural Context

Era: 1700s-present

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal