passenger

American  

[pas-uhn-jer] / ˈpæs ən dʒər /

noun

passengers plural

1. a person who is traveling in an automobile, bus, train, airplane, or other conveyance, especially one who is not the driver, pilot, or the like.

2. a wayfarer; traveler.

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passenger British  

/ ˈpæsɪndʒə /

noun

1. 1. a person travelling in a car, train, boat, etc, not driven by him

   2. ( as modifier )

      a passenger seat

2. a member of a group or team who is a burden on the others through not participating fully in the work

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonpassenger
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• passengers
  plural

Etymology

Origin of passenger

1300–50; Middle English passager < Middle French, noun use of passag ( i ) er (adj.) passing, temporary; see passage ¹, -ier ²; for -n- cf. messenger, harbinger, scavenger, popinjay

Explanation

A passenger is a person who rides in a vehicle. If you grab a ride home from school with your best friend, you are a passenger in her car. Everyone riding in a train, plane, bus, or any other vehicle is a passenger — except the driver, pilot, or crew. A passenger's only job is to ride along. In the fourteenth century, a passenger was simply a "passer-by," from the Old French passagier, "passing, fleeting, or traveling." The first instance of the modern use was recorded in the early 1500s.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

passenger passengers

Because drag increases as you approach the speed of sound, commercial passenger jets still cruise between 500 mph and 600 mph, as they did in the 1960s.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026

“You are not an idle passenger of history. You get to control the impact that technology has on you and your society.”

From Salon ● Jul. 13, 2026

Paul Rees gave the presenter expert driving advice from the passenger seat, and is now seeking up to £150,000 for personal injury, according to court documents.

From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026

"The masks dropped and there was a strong smell. The head and shoulders of one passenger were outside the window. Fortunately, he hadn't taken off his seat belt."

From Barron's ● Jul. 10, 2026

Daniel Ellsberg sat in the front passenger seat with his camera pointed out the window.

From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin

A fire broke out on board once the aircraft landed and passengers had disembarked, the BBC's US partner CBS News reported.

From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2026

Other passengers near the man helped to pull him in, she said.

From Barron's ● Jul. 10, 2026

But the three passengers in his vehicle — one of whom is Salgado Araujo’s brother — who were detained and taken to the Montgomery Processing Center in Conroe, Texas, disputed ICE’s account.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026

Japan Airlines, for instance, has axed more than 100 flights for Friday and Saturday, disrupting travel for nearly 20,000 passengers.

From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026

The other Monitors are already disappearing into the gaping entrance of the ship with the rest of the passengers.

From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera

Related Words

• commuter
• customer
• fare
• patron
• pilgrim
• rider
• tourist
• traveler