Amtrak

American

[am-trak] / ˈæmˌtræk /

noun

a government-subsidized public corporation created by Congress in 1970 to operate a national intercity passenger railroad system through contracts with existing railroads.

Etymology

Origin of Amtrak

Am(erican) tra(vel on trac)k

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.

Much of the site is owned by Amtrak, a corporation chartered by the federal government.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 27, 2026

I took Amtrak from Oakland to Boston and back.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 3, 2026

I was seriously worried about not making my Chicago connection, but Amtrak actually held the Southwest Chief.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 3, 2026

Amtrak will probably have to idle some of the new trains it is rolling out because the railroad’s maintenance facilities won’t be upgraded in time, federal inspectors found.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 22, 2025

We spent two days on the Amtrak train, heading west through hills, over rivers, past amber waves of grain.

From "The Lightning Thief" by Rick Riordan

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023