traffic
Americannoun
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traffic
plural
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the movement of vehicles, ships, persons, etc., in an area, along a street, through an air lane, over a water route, etc..
the heavy traffic on Main Street.
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the vehicles, persons, etc., moving in an area, along a street, etc.
-
the transportation of goods for the purpose of trade, by sea, land, or air.
ships of traffic.
-
trade; buying and selling; commercial dealings.
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trade between different countries or places; commerce.
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the business done by a railroad or other carrier in the transportation of freight or passengers.
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the aggregate of freight, passengers, telephone or telegraph messages, etc., handled, especially in a given period.
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communication, dealings, or contact between persons or groups.
traffic between the Democrats and the Republicans.
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mutual exchange or communication.
traffic in ideas.
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trade in some specific commodity or service, often of an illegal nature.
the vast traffic in narcotics.
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illegal commercial trade in human beings for the purpose of exploiting them.
the traffic in young children.
verb (used without object)
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traffics,
present (3rd person singular)
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trafficked,
past participle, past
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trafficking
present participle
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to carry on traffic, trade, or commercial dealings.
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to trade or deal in a specific commodity or service, often of an illegal nature (usually followed byin ).
to traffic in opium.
verb (used with object)
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traffics,
present (3rd person singular)
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trafficked,
past participle, past
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trafficking
present participle
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(of vehicles or persons) to move over or through (a place).
It's a heavily trafficked bridge.
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to trade or deal in (a commodity or service).
to traffic guns.
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to trade in (human beings) for the purpose of exploitation.
He was convicted for trafficking illegal immigrants.
noun
-
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the vehicles coming and going in a street, town, etc
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( as modifier )
traffic lights
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the movement of vehicles, people, etc, in a particular place or for a particular purpose
sea traffic
-
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the business of commercial transportation by land, sea, or air
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the freight, passengers, etc, transported
-
-
(usually foll by with) dealings or business
have no traffic with that man
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trade, esp of an illicit or improper kind
drug traffic
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the aggregate volume of messages transmitted through a communications system in a given period
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the number of customers patronizing a commercial establishment in a given time period
verb
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(often foll by in) to carry on trade or business, esp of an illicit kind
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(usually foll by with) to have dealings
Synonym Usage
See trade.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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trafficsimple
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trafficssimple
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have traffickedperfect
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has traffickedperfect
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am traffickingprogressive
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are traffickingprogressive
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is traffickingprogressive
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have been traffickingperfect progressive
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has been traffickingperfect progressive
Past
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traffickedsimple
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had traffickedperfect
-
was traffickingprogressive
-
were traffickingprogressive
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had been traffickingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of traffic
First recorded in 1495–1505; earlier traffyk, from Middle French trafique (noun), trafiquer; (verb) from Italian traffico (noun), trafficare (verb), of disputed origin
Explanation
If you drive during rush hour, you're likely to hit some heavy traffic, and if you get stuck in a big traffic jam, you'll definitely be late. It's not just cars that create traffic — a large number of anything trying to occupy the same space adds up to traffic. Internet providers may see a lot of traffic when there's big news and everyone is trying to sign on to find out what happened. Pedestrians also create traffic, like those walking past your new burrito palace and pet costume shop. While your business may be perfectly respectable, you would want to watch out for people who traffic stolen goods and illegal drugs. In that sense, traffic acts as a verb indicating you're trading something, often illegally.
Vocabulary lists containing traffic
"The Crucible" -- Vocabulary from all 4 Acts
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"The Odyssey," Vocabulary from Part 1 of the epic poem
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Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857)
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
A series of recent eruptions from Europe's most active volcano have caused local air traffic disruption but have also drawn in many tourists.
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
The stock had previously fallen almost a third this year on concerns that AI models will divert traffic from the company’s message boards.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
However, executives pointed to “volatile” traffic and “choppy” search referrals.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026
The long-awaited Automated People Mover train at Los Angeles International Airport is expected to transform traffic ahead of the 2028 Olympics.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
In Atlanta, a police officer directed traffic with a radio held to his ear.
From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin
This stomach-churning feature traffics in tropes familiar from ‘The Exorcist’ and other horror movies to tell its Egyptian story.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 16, 2026
He’s a young Tokyo laundry plant worker who in his downtime traffics in resold goods at exorbitant markups, with little care for their authenticity.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 25, 2025
Genre fiction traffics in extremes that make certain scenarios seem impossible.
From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2024
Like any tech company that traffics in attention, it has every reason to keep users inside the walled garden as long as possible and little incentive to see them graduate.
From Slate ● Jul. 25, 2023
His position among writers on æsthetics is anomalous and incredible: no merchant traffics in his heart, yet he commands a large, an eager, an affectionate public.
From Unicorns by James Huneker
Ruemmler maintained she found Giuffre’s claims of being trafficked by world leaders and American politicians to be inconsistent with what she understood about the evidence that was uncovered in Florida.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026
They were told the citizenship application was suspended and that Marcus had possibly been trafficked into Singapore.
From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026
Some commuters and bystanders documented encountering the group on public transit and in busy pedestrian areas, with social media posts describing confusion and unease during what was otherwise a heavily trafficked holiday weekend.
From Salon ● Jul. 5, 2026
The animal, one of the world's most endangered and trafficked mammals, has been stripped of its scales and is being advertised by a Thai account selling "seasonal wild delicacies".
From Barron's ● Jun. 29, 2026
Ants trafficked in and out of the eggplants.
From "Tasting the Sky" by Ibtisam Barakat
Campaigners have repeatedly stressed the importance of protecting the identities of people involved in investigations into sexual abuse and trafficking because of the potential impact on victims' wellbeing and privacy.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
According to an annual government report, the number of wiretaps obtained by DHS — often to investigate drug trafficking — plummeted to 23 in 2025, from 133 the previous year.
From Salon ● Aug. 15, 2026
But more than 20 charities in both countries have said the French-British deal inflicts "further harm on people who have already survived war, torture, persecution, violence, human trafficking, and a treacherous sea journey".
From Barron's ● Aug. 5, 2026
She said her mind leapt to human trafficking, a popular topic in the Facebook groups where she chatted with other surrogates.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
In light of new evidence, Matthias Benedik Helvar is granted full and immediate pardon for all charges of slave trafficking.
From "Six of Crows" by Leigh Bardugo
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
