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

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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

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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

Another passenger on the flight and an activist confirmed her account.

From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026

Passengers have many theories as to why barf bags have gone missing, from short turnaround times between flights to passenger misuse—or even a life hack popular on TikTok.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

Edens, 64 years old, who had divorced his longtime wife before meeting Luo, is known for unusual investments, including subprime loans after the 2008-09 financial crisis and a private passenger railway in Florida.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2026

AirNav Radar, a flight data provider, posted on X that "a passenger window is cracked. Flight deck going through checks before deciding were to divert".

From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026

“I finally tracked Saleem down. It took a while because he’d taken a passenger all the way to the hospital in town.”

From "Rickshaw Girl" by Mitali Perkins

A bus has hit a stationary freight train near the French entrance to the Channel Tunnel, injuring the driver and 18 passengers, French authorities say.

From BBC ● Oct. 15, 2026

It nonetheless hit a record of 8.2 million passengers during the quarter.

From Barron's ● Oct. 14, 2026

Saudia previously confirmed no passengers were on board the aircraft at the time.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2026

Chaos ensued: passengers told the BBC they were stranded on platforms for hours, with some having to book hotels for the night.

From BBC ● Oct. 12, 2026

The trolley started to empty, passengers grabbing their bags and hustling out.

From "The Marvellers" by Dhonielle Clayton

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Related Words

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

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