sidewalk
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sidewalk
A raised and paved path for pedestrians located at the side of a street. In Austria, it is called 'Gehsteig'.
Bitte klappen Sie die Bürgersteige hoch, wir kommen gleich durch!
Please fold up the sidewalks; we'll be coming through any minute!
The word is made up of 'Bürger' (citizen) and 'Steig' (a path). So literally, it is the path for citizens, separated from the roadway for vehicles.
Kinder sollten mit dem Fahrrad nicht auf dem Bürgersteig fahren.
Children should not ride their bikes on the sidewalk.
The word 'Bürgersteig' (sidewalk) is common mainly in Germany. In Austria, people say 'der Gehsteig' instead; in Switzerland, 'das Trottoir' is common.
In Wien muss man im Winter den Gehsteig vor dem Haus schneefrei halten.
In Vienna, you have to keep the sidewalk in front of the house free of snow in winter.
The idiom 'die Bürgersteige hochklappen' literally means 'to fold up the sidewalks' and means that nothing is happening in a town or place in the evening or on the weekend. It is often used jokingly to say that a place is very quiet.
In diesem kleinen Dorf werden um acht Uhr abends die Bürgersteige hochgeklappt.
In this small village, they fold up the sidewalks at eight o'clock in the evening.
sidewalk
Gehweg and Bürgersteig can both refer in everyday speech to the same paved pedestrian area beside a road. Gehweg is the neutral term and is also commonly used in official contexts. Bürgersteig is also understandable and used in everyday speech, but regional preferences vary; in Austria, this is called Gehsteig.
Bitte gehen Sie auf dem Bürgersteig und nicht auf der Fahrbahn.
Please walk on the sidewalk, not in the roadway.
Bitte gehen Sie auf dem Gehweg und nicht auf der Fahrbahn.
Please walk on the sidewalk, not in the roadway.
