bowling alley vs alley

bowling alley and alley both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
bowling alley	Yes	No	No	No
alley	Yes	No	No	No

As nouns, bowling alley and alley are synonyms defined as:

bowling alley and alley: a lane down which a bowling ball is rolled toward pins

Other synonyms of bowling alley include skittle alley.

bowling alley (noun)	alley (noun)
a lane down which a bowling ball is rolled toward pins	a narrow street with walls on both sides
a building that contains several alleys for bowling	a lane down which a bowling ball is rolled toward pins