journey
Americannoun
-
journeys
plural
-
a traveling from one place to another, usually taking a rather long time; trip.
a six-day journey across the desert.
-
a distance, course, or area traveled or suitable for traveling.
a desert journey.
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a period of travel.
a week's journey.
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passage or progress from one stage to another.
the journey to success.
verb (used without object)
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journeys,
present (3rd person singular)
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journeyed,
past participle, past
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journeying
present participle
noun
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a travelling from one place to another; trip or voyage
-
-
the distance travelled in a journey
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the time taken to make a journey
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verb
Usage
What does journey mean? A journey is a trip, especially one to a faraway place that takes place over a long period of time. The word trip can refer to any instance of traveling from one place to another, no matter how long or short it is. The word journey, though, typically implies a long trip—one that’s at least several hours, and perhaps several months or even years. It also often implies adventure—a journey might even be a quest. A journey may or may not have a planned destination other than whatever lies ahead. The word is also commonly used in a figurative way to liken any lengthy process or progress to such a trip, as in Life is a journey, with many interesting detours. Journey can also be used as a verb meaning to make a long trip, as in We must journey to the land beyond the mountains. Example: My favorite books are about people who make epic journeys around the world.
Synonym Usage
See trip 1.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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journeysimple
-
journeyssimple
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have journeyedperfect
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has journeyedperfect
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am journeyingprogressive
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are journeyingprogressive
-
is journeyingprogressive
-
have been journeyingperfect progressive
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has been journeyingperfect progressive
Past
-
journeyedsimple
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had journeyedperfect
-
was journeyingprogressive
-
were journeyingprogressive
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had been journeyingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of journey
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English journee “day,” from Old French, from unattested Vulgar Latin diurnāta “a day's time, day's work, etc.,” equivalent to Latin diurn(us) “daily” + -āta, feminine of -ātus -ate 1; see -ade 1
Explanation
If you're looking for a more refined word to call your latest drive to the beach or trip to the mall, try journey — a noun that describes travel from one place to another. From the Old French journée, meaning a “day’s work or travel,” journey doubles as both noun and verb. The noun simply refers to a voyage; the verb is the act of taking that voyage. So you can journey across the Sahara, or tell friends about your journey across the desert if you make it back alive. Either way, you should always remember that life is a journey, not a destination.
Vocabulary lists containing journey
Michelle Obama's Speech at the 2016 DNC
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Beowulf vocabulary
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Greetings, World Traveler! — List 2
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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:
On Monday, it took its final journey from Alabama to the coast of Destin, Florida, where it will be sunk on Wednesday in a precision operation without explosives.
From BBC ● Nov. 11, 2026
In the bustle of boarding, he had misplaced his cellphone, a special worry since it contained much that he needed for his journey.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 11, 2026
What was this journey for the character, for you?
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 11, 2026
Crowds chanted "Ole, ole, ole, Leon, Leon", waved yellow-and-white Vatican flags, and packed a kilometres-long stretch of Avenida del Libertador while giant screens relayed images of the pope's journey through the city.
From Barron's ● Nov. 9, 2026
God knew I had drunk enough on my journey, but I was sweating now, and I poured water over myself to cool down.
From "Flying Through Water" by Mamle Wolo
I also write and talk about mental health, and I’ve helped coach a number of people—friends of friends, mothers of friends, even near-strangers—through their own ECT journeys.
From Slate ● Nov. 11, 2026
The route has grown in prominence amid tighter controls and increased cooperation between European countries and North African states, which may have diverted some journeys away from the central Mediterranean.
From BBC ● Nov. 9, 2026
The findings help explain why some sinking material transports carbon much farther into the ocean than other particles, even though both begin their journeys near the surface.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 9, 2026
Now, these players are set to face arduous journeys back to the PGA Tour.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 5, 2026
She had to go under the hedge in two journeys in order not to spill the water from the jug.
From "Coraline" by Neil Gaiman
The Spaniards journeyed in that direction until a friendly guide told Coronado that Quivira actually lay to the north.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 28, 2026
Misley Mandarin, one of the British-Chagossians who journeyed to the territory, said he had come "peacefully, respectfully, and without threat to anyone - simply to stand on our homeland again".
From BBC ● Feb. 20, 2026
Humans have journeyed roughly 25 billion km beyond our planet, yet drilling beneath Earth's surface has only reached a depth of just over 12 km.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 5, 2026
Between the 1930s and the 1970s, German ethnologist Hans Himmelheber journeyed across Ivory Coast amassing a collection of ritual objects.
From Barron's ● Jan. 16, 2026
He journeyed to Delphi to ask the god if there was any hope that some day he would be the father of a boy.
From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton
Evan Mills, a financial advisor at Scholar Advising who works with SpaceX employees, previously told MarketWatch that many of those employees believe in the company’s long-term vision, which includes journeying to Mars.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 20, 2026
Well, I have just had the privilege of spending a month journeying - literally and figuratively - through some of the divisions that define modern Britain, for a Radio 4 series.
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026
In a blaring nightclub in wartime Myanmar, partied-out revellers doze until dawn by the dancefloor, wary of journeying home despite the end of a post-coup curfew.
From Barron's ● Jun. 12, 2026
All of this searching, seeking, journeying, finding a sense of self and a sovereign self, all that stuff comes from a little hole, a little bit of lack in her.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 15, 2025
That she is still journeying somewhere is apparent, for Mrs. Harker’s hypnotic report at sunrise was still the same.
From "Dracula" by Bram Stoker
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