通り (toori): Japanese for Street, Path, and ‘Just as…’

The Japanese word 通り (toori) often sounds everyday — and it is. Literally it points to a street, avenue, or path where people and things pass through. The moment it shows up in set phrases like その通り, 思い通り, or 時間通り, though, the “road” becomes a kind of measure: just as said, just as planned, on time, exactly so.

Learners keep meeting the same kanji in very different places. This page gathers the main readings, shows when you are more likely to hear とおり versus どおり, and keeps the practical example sentences that make the nuance stick in real Japanese.

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What does 通り (toori) mean literally?

As a noun, 通り is often translated as street, road, avenue, or passageway. It sits next to the verb 通る (tooru) — to pass, go through, go by. That is why the core image is often flow: traffic, people walking past, something that “goes through” a stretch of space.

Combined with other words, the sense stretches further: street traffic, passage, transmission, reach, reputation, or understanding. The thread stays the same: something that passes through, or a line you can follow.

On city maps and signs, 通り often names lively streets with shops and proper names — different from more technical 道路 (dōro) (roadway/infrastructure) or the broader 道 (michi) (way/path/direction). Street names frequently end in -dōri (どおり), as in Meiji-dōri: the reading voices because 通り is attached to a noun.

とおり and どおり: “just as…” and “according to…”

Beyond the street meaning, 通り is a core grammar pattern (around JLPT N3). It says that something is or happens exactly like a statement, expectation, instruction, or plan.

• Verb + とおり (に) — just as… / exactly as… (e.g. 言ったとおり “as said”)
• Noun + どおり / のとおり — according to the noun (e.g. 予定どおり “as planned”, 地図のとおり “as on the map”)

The particle に is often optional. In writing you will see both kanji (通り) and hiragana (とおり／どおり). In noun compounds, the voiced reading どおり is usual: 時間どおり, 約束どおり, 予想どおり.

Two close relatives are worth keeping separate. 思い通り (omoidōri) leans toward “as intended / as one wants.” 思ったとおり (omotta tōri) can mean the same, but often stresses “just as I thought / expected” — expectation more than pure intention.

Set phrases you will hear constantly

These chunks show up in conversation, dramas, and textbooks all the time:

• その通り — exactly / that’s right
• おっしゃる通り — polite agreement: “you’re absolutely right”
• 時間通り — on time, at the agreed hour
• 約束通り — as promised
• 予想通り / 期待通り — as expected / as hoped
• いつも通り — as usual
• 見ての通り — as you can see

Knowing these chunks makes dialogue faster to parse — and answers sound more natural without long explanations. If you are building Japanese vocabulary next to grammar, you can keep going with pieces like why Japanese words carry so many meanings or a broader glossary of Japanese grammar terms.

Example sentences with 通り

Here are the original sentences with kanji, romaji, and English. Watch whether 通り is a street, a “pass through” verb compound, or the “just as…” pattern.

私は今回は自分の思い通りにするつもりだ。
Watashi wa konkai wa jibun no omoidōri ni suru tsumori da.

This time I’m going to do things my own way.

彼女は僕をちらりとも見ずに通り過ぎた。
Kanojo wa boku o chirari to mo mizu ni tōrisugita.

She walked past without even glancing at me.

彼の家は通りの向こう側にあります。
Kare no ie wa tōri no mukōgawa ni arimasu.

His house is on the other side of the street.

彼はいつも時間通りに来る。
Kare wa itsumo jikandōri ni kuru.

He always arrives on time.

思い通りに行けるのさ。
Omoidōri ni ikeru no sa.

Things can go just the way you want.

うん、僕もその通りだと思うよ。
Un, boku mo sono tōri da to omou yo.

Yeah — I think so too.

君は私がすすめる通りにするほうがよい。
Kimi wa watashi ga susumeru tōri ni suru hō ga yoi.

You’d better do it the way I suggest.

私たちの汽車は長いトンネルを通り抜けた。
Watashitachi no kisha wa nagai tonneru o tōrinuketa.

Our train went through a long tunnel.

私は通りすがりの旅人です。
Watashi wa tōrisugari no tabibito desu.

I’m just a traveler passing through.

全くその通りです。
Mattaku sono tōri desu.

That’s absolutely right.

言うとおりにして。
Iu tōri ni shite.

Do it as you’re told / as was said.

お母さんは森を通り抜けた。
Okāsan wa mori o tōrinuketa.

My mother passed through the forest.

Quick orientation: which reading when?

A practical rule of thumb:

• Street / passage / going past — 通り (tōri), often with verbs like 通り過ぎる, 通り抜ける
• “Just as…” after a verb — とおり (often hiragana), e.g. 言ったとおり
• “According to…” stuck to a noun — often どおり, e.g. 計画どおり, 予報どおり
• Street names — frequently -dōri at the end of the name

You do not need every nuance memorized at once. Ask one short question in context: is this about a real path — or about matching a plan, a statement, an expectation? That single question separates the street from the grammar.

Once you can spot 通り in both roles, Japanese street signs read differently, and the small agreements and time phrases in shows and podcasts click into place. After that, a lot more of the language opens up — literally and figuratively.