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.
-
a period of travel.
a week's journey.
-
passage or progress from one stage to another.
the journey to success.
verb (used without object)
-
journeys,
present (3rd person singular)
-
journeyed,
past participle, past
-
journeying
present participle
noun
-
a travelling from one place to another; trip or voyage
-
-
the distance travelled in a journey
-
the time taken to make a journey
-
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
-
journeysimple
-
journeyssimple
-
have journeyedperfect
-
has journeyedperfect
-
am journeyingprogressive
-
are journeyingprogressive
-
is journeyingprogressive
-
have been journeyingperfect progressive
-
has been journeyingperfect progressive
Past
-
journeyedsimple
-
had journeyedperfect
-
was journeyingprogressive
-
were journeyingprogressive
-
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
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Beowulf vocabulary
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Greetings, World Traveler! — List 2
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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 the journey back to London, his condition deteriorated to such an extent that a decision was taken to divert the team coach to a hospital in Nottingham so he could receive treatment.
From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026
Although she’s a New Yorker now, Los Angeles plays a crucial role in her musical journey.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026
Part of the answer, of course, is that Home Depot started its public market compounding journey at a much lower base.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
Roman also began its journey with more propellant available than planners originally expected to need.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 18, 2026
When I started my journey, it was as if all the obstacles in my way weren’t really obstacles at all —just minor annoyances.
From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff
A freight railroad from Tehran to Xi’an in eastern China has jumped from once-a-week journeys to every three or four days since the blockade started, according to the state-controlled Tehran Times.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026
Despite all the plaudits, Jackie has always been slightly perplexed as to why the show has made such an impact, but understands how watching their journeys has helped some people make sense of their own.
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026
Prime Minister Andy Burnham said the new trains would deliver "faster, more reliable journeys to the north and thousands of British jobs for the next generation".
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
It is concentrated in short routes, such as between-factory round trips; most diesel is burned on long journeys where charging infrastructure is lagging.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 3, 2026
“Pain and aches, boat journeys, marches, hunger and fatigue seemed to belong to the limbo of forgotten things, and there remained only the perfect contentment that comes of work accomplished.”
From "Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World" by Jennifer Armstrong
A group of U.S. executives also journeyed to Caracas to discuss potential investments.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 28, 2026
He and his family journeyed for hundreds of miles by cart from Tartu in southern Estonia to Hamburg in northern Germany.
From BBC ● Apr. 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
During the course of my master of divinity classes, I journeyed back to Princeton Hospital for an internship.
From "While the World Watched: A Birmingham Bombing Survivor Comes of Age during the Civil Rights Movement" by Carolyn Maull McKinstry
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
That’s a worthy destination for the journeying Mr. Burnham.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 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
We ate almost all our meals in the drawing room, journeying to the dining car only on those infrequent occasions when Mother yielded to our complaints that scurvy was threatening to set in.
From "Cheaper by the Dozen" by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
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.
