tourist
Americannoun
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a person who travels for pleasure, usually sightseeing and staying in hotels
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( as modifier )
tourist attractions
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a person on an excursion or sightseeing tour
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a person travelling abroad as a member of a sports team that is playing a series of usually international matches
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Also called: tourist class. the lowest class of accommodation on a passenger ship
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of tourist
Explanation
Someone who visits a city, town, or historic site just for the pleasure of exploring it can be described as a tourist. When you travel for fun, you're a tourist. Some local inhabitants of vacation destinations might have a negative image of obnoxious, camera-toting tourists, but really they're just travelers who are curious about different parts of the world. Beaches, amusement parks, castles, and big cities are all places you're likely to run into tourists. The term "tourist trap," or a place that exists only to take tourists' money, was first used in 1939 by the novelist Graham Greene.
Vocabulary lists containing tourist
This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for August 21–August 27, 2021
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Travel
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for February 5–February 11, 2022
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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.
Like almost anywhere in the world, a tourist can have a fun time on vacation here.
From Slate • Jun. 25, 2026
In Paris, the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre, two of the most visited tourist attractions in the world, announced earlier closing times because of the heatwave.
From Barron's • Jun. 24, 2026
Blackpool council is halfway through a £2 billion program to regenerate the town and has taken direct control of a number of tourist attractions, including the local waxworks museum.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 22, 2026
Supporters of the industry have pushed back against ban efforts in the past, arguing that carriages are a regulated tourist staple and a key part of Central Park’s identity and local economy.
From Salon • Jun. 20, 2026
The missing Mona Lisa became a tourist attraction.
From "The Mona Lisa Vanishes" by Nicholas Day
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.
