pedestrian

American  

[puh-des-tree-uhn] / pəˈdɛs tri ən /

noun

pedestrians plural

1. a person who goes or travels on foot; walker.

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adjective

1. going or performed on foot; walking.

2. of or relating to walking.

3. lacking in vitality, imagination, distinction, etc.; commonplace; prosaic or dull.

   a pedestrian commencement speech.

pedestrian British  

/ pɪˈdɛstrɪən /

noun

1. 1. a person travelling on foot; walker

   2. ( as modifier )

      a pedestrian precinct

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adjective

1. dull; commonplace

   a pedestrian style of writing

Usage

What does pedestrian mean? A pedestrian is a person who travels by foot—a walker. The term is especially used in the context of road safety to distinguish people walking from people driving or riding bikes. In this sense, the word is also commonly used as an adjective to refer to things involving pedestrians, such as in pedestrian crossing, pedestrian safety, and pedestrian walkway. Example: Pedestrians will continue to be struck by cars unless we improve and enforce pedestrian safety laws. Pedestrian is also a negative term for something considered mediocre, uninspired, or lacking in originality. It’s especially used in artistic criticism, such as in reviews of music, movies, fashion, or food. Calling something pedestrian is typically considered an insult. Example: Don’t you think that sweater is a little pedestrian? You want to dress to impress, right?

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonpedestrian
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• pedestrians
  plural

Etymology

Origin of pedestrian

1710–20; < Latin pedestri- (stem of pedester on foot, derivative of pēs (stem ped- ); see pedi-) + -an

Explanation

A pedestrian is someone traveling by foot. If you're a pedestrian, you will likely get annoyed at the drivers who don't stop so you can cross the street. Pedestrian comes from the Latin pedester meaning "going on foot" but also "plain." As a noun, it's someone walking around — sidewalks are for pedestrians. As an adjective it means "lacking wit or imagination." If someone calls your new poem pedestrian, they mean it's dull. If you want to impress your friends while also making them feel worthless, mutter "these people are SO pedestrian," at a party, loud enough for everyone to hear.

Example Sentences

Saturday, near West 8th Place and Garland Avenue, for a car crash involving a pedestrian.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 27, 2026

The system's AI technology is "powerful enough" to detect tiny movements that indicate a pedestrian is about to walk across the road, he said at the South by Southwest tech festival in London.

From Barron's • Jun. 24, 2026

In Skid Row, the funding would have funded an effort to connect existing bike and pedestrian pathways through downtown L.A. to schools, health facilities and job centers.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 19, 2026

"We need a regulatory framework, we need to designate operating rules, insurance requirements, accessibility standards, possibly permitting fees, operational limits in high pedestrian areas, and to have accountability for the operators."

From BBC • Jun. 17, 2026

But this kind of rebellion threatens only the rare pedestrian member of the owning class.

From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich

Related Words

• banal
• humdrum
• mediocre
• mundane
• plodding
• prosaic