itinerant
Americanadjective
-
traveling from place to place, especially on a circuit, as a minister, judge, or sales representative; itinerating; journeying.
- Antonyms:
- settled
-
characterized by such traveling.
itinerant preaching.
-
working in one place for a comparatively short time and then moving on to work in another place, usually as a physical or outdoor laborer; characterized by alternating periods of working and wandering.
an itinerant farm hand.
noun
-
a person who alternates between working and wandering.
-
a person who travels from place to place, especially for duty or business.
adjective
-
itinerating
-
working for a short time in various places, esp as a casual labourer
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of itinerant
1560–70; < Late Latin itinerant- (stem of itinerāns ), present participle of itinerārī to journey, equivalent to itiner- (stem of iter ) journey ( see iter) + -ant- -ant
Explanation
An itinerant is a person who moves from place to place, typically for work, like the itinerant preacher who moves to a new community every few years. Itinerant is pronounced "eye-TIN-er-ant." It might remind you of itinerary, the traveler's schedule that lists flights, hotel check-in times, and other plans. It's no surprise that both words come from the Latin word itinerare, meaning "to travel." Itinerant was first used in the 16th century to describe circuit judges who traveled to faraway courtrooms. Today, almost anyone can be an itinerant.
Vocabulary lists containing itinerant
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
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"Once Upon a Time," Vocabulary from the short story
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "I"
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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.
Soon after, Wiesel’s eccentric instructor makes his way to Israel where, like an itinerant preacher, he speaks to enthusiastic audiences at one kibbutz after another.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 28, 2026
Also according to legend, there was a mild-mannered, nurturant, exception: John Chapman, the itinerant Swedenborgian Christian preacher and horticulturalist better known as Johnny Appleseed.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 26, 2026
Adams had an itinerant upbringing, spending a formative part of his early years in Europe before moving to Ohio, where he attended high school and college.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 8, 2026
Police have described the suspect as an "itinerant" worker who had travelled to Australia on multiple occasions between 2019 and 2024, and had addresses in the states of Victoria and New South Wales.
From BBC • Jan. 28, 2026
Tall, charismatic, and quick with a smile, Howard Vaughan worked as an itinerant bellman at luxury hotels, going south to Florida in the winter and north to upstate New York and Vermont in the summer.
From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly
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.
