fare
Americannoun
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fares
plural
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the price of conveyance or passage in a bus, train, airplane, or other vehicle.
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a person or persons who pay to be conveyed in a vehicle; paying passenger.
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a person who hires a public vehicle and its driver.
-
hearty fare.
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something offered to the public, for entertainment, enjoyment, consumption, etc..
literary fare.
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Archaic. state of things.
verb (used without object)
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fares,
present (3rd person singular)
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fared,
past participle, past
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faring
present participle
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to experience good or bad fortune, treatment, etc.; get on.
He fared well in his profession.
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to go; turn out; happen (used impersonally).
It fared ill with him.
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to go; travel.
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to eat and drink.
They fared sumptuously.
noun
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the sum charged or paid for conveyance in a bus, train, aeroplane, etc
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a paying passenger, esp when carried by taxi
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a range of food and drink; diet
verb
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to get on (as specified); manage
he fared well
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to turn out or happen as specified
it fared badly with him
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archaic to eat
we fared sumptuously
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archaic (often foll by forth) to go or travel
Synonym Usage
See food.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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faresimple
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faressimple
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have faredperfect
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has faredperfect
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am faringprogressive
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are faringprogressive
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is faringprogressive
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have been faringperfect progressive
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has been faringperfect progressive
Past
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faredsimple
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had faredperfect
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was faringprogressive
-
were faringprogressive
-
had been faringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of fare
First recorded before 1000; Middle English faren, Old English faran; cognate with German fahren, Old Norse fara, Gothic faran; akin to emporium, port 5, pram 2
Explanation
It's not fair that fare means three unrelated things. As a verb, it means to proceed or get along, as in "Fare thee well." As a noun, it can refer to the cost of travel ("Train fare is ten dollars") or to food ("Tatertots are typical cafeteria fare"). Although this word has multiple meanings, they can all be traced back to the Old English root for "journey." If you’re taking a trip, fare well! If you do fare well, you'll have a great time. A taxi looking for a fare might give you a ride to the airport (though you'll have to pay the fare). And if you didn’t bring your own food, you’ll have to eat airplane fare. Fare is a handy word to bring on a journey!
Vocabulary lists containing fare
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"The Civil Rights Movement"
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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:
This will be Metrolink’s first fare hike in 13 years, the rail agency said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2026
Singapore’s public transport council announced an overall fare increase of 7% effective Dec. 26, which the analyst says reflects the recent sharp rise in energy costs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026
For each connected trip on public transit, riders will earn $2.85 in Waymo Cash, which is the cost of transit fare in San Francisco.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2026
And indeed, many colleges where the mix of majors tends to be higher-paying did fare better.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 22, 2026
All she thought about was going to Hollywood when she could scrape up the bus fare and getting a job as a secretary and being buddies with Jeanette MacDonald and getting in the movies herself.
From "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" by Carson McCullers
“Metrolink has worked hard to keep fares affordable while the cost of operating and maintaining our regional rail system has continued to rise,” Metrolink Chief Executive Darren Kettle said in a recent statement.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2026
It said council support was needed most in rural areas, with lower populations making it harder to cover cost through bus fares and the countryside meaning "longer distances, more fuel".
From BBC ● Sep. 21, 2026
“Sharp price rises for petrol and diesel pushed inflation up again,” the ONS said, adding that higher air fares and factory prices also contributed to the increase.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026
Since entering government in July, Burnham has offered the British public some relatively low-cost relief such as cheaper bus fares and a tax cut on electricity bills.
From Barron's ● Sep. 16, 2026
The conductor says, Fares, please, fares, but Uncle Pat says, Go ’way an’ don’t be botherin’ me, can’t you see the state o’ me leg?
From "Angela's Ashes: A Memoir" by Frank McCourt
But he fared better than Russell, who was lacking pace compared to his team-mate all day, and ended up 0.240secs off Antonelli.
From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026
Hardt pointed out that the CDU/CSU fared far better in other regional elections earlier this year, when we spoke minutes after Merz addressed party lawmakers at a closed-door meeting in the Bundestag.
From BBC ● Sep. 25, 2026
See how your airport fared and let me know if you agree with the results.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
A 2013 push by Google failed to take off but Meta's smart spectacles, developed in partnership with Ray-Ban maker EssilorLuxottica, have fared much better.
From Barron's ● Sep. 12, 2026
The older young, those hatched a year or more earlier, fared only slightly better.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
Cartier owner Richemont is faring better than LVMH.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026
Tokyo shed more than two percent, with Kioxia off around 10 percent and investment giant SoftBank faring little better.
From Barron's ● Aug. 19, 2026
They aren’t living drab or depressing lives when the Guardians of the Universe activate them — they’re faring pretty well, all things considered.
From Salon ● Aug. 16, 2026
In Europe, flash purchasing managers’ surveys for August will give a steer on how economies are faring in an environment of high energy prices and heightened geopolitical uncertainty.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
They stitched uneasily, the needles faring through the dark material with a long gleam Hke falling stars.
From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White
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.
