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commuter

American  
[kuh-myoo-ter] / kəˈmyu tər /

noun

  1. a person who commutes, especially between home and work.


adjective

  1. of or for commuting; serving commuters.

    a commuter railroad.

  2. of or relating to a flight, plane, or airline that carries passengers over relatively short distances and usually serves small communities.

commuter British  
/ kəˈmjuːtə /

noun

    1. a person who travels to work over an appreciable distance, usually from the suburbs to the centre of a city

    2. ( as modifier )

      the commuter belt

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of commuter

An Americanism dating back to 1860–65; commute + -er 1

Explanation

A commuter is someone who has a lengthy trip to work, usually from a suburb to a city. Some people are lucky enough to work at home or live very close to where they work. Others are commuters: commuters need to commute — travel — to work. Being a commuter isn't easy, because it might take anywhere from 20 minutes to two hours to get from home to work and then back again, both times during rush hour. Usually, a commuter lives in the suburbs and commutes to the city, where many jobs are.

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Vocabulary lists containing commuter

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.

But he would swap the small commuter district for Blackburn because the two clubs had a partnership which involved young Spanish footballers travelling to the Lancashire club for trials.

From BBC • May 29, 2026

Long Island Rail Road employees, meanwhile, went on strike for the first time in three decades over the weekend, halting the country’s busiest commuter railroad.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 20, 2026

Hotel housekeepers, commuter rail workers and nurses are among the unionized workers who have notched big wage gains.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 20, 2026

The district reflects a mix of suburban commuter communities and is located near major military installations like Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton and the Naval Weapons Station in Fallbrook.

From Los Angeles Times • May 1, 2026

The commuter flights that drone across Africa are often jammed with people, and this flight was probably full.

From "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston

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