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.
See Examples For:
Like others participating in the ceremony, she has conflicted feelings about the growing tourist presence.
From Barron's ● Nov. 2, 2026
Labour mayors in England vow to cap tourist tax at 5%
From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2026
At least two people have been killed and five injured after a rock formation collapsed at a tourist site in Turkey's historical region of Cappadocia, local media is reporting.
From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026
In the tourist traps of the 5th and 7th, it has been turned into an oversize ice-cream cone.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026
We walk past Ripley’s Believe It or Not! and Madame Tussauds, a tourist trap with wax models of celebrities that people take selfies with and share on Facebook.
From "What If It's Us" by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera
Last year, those sales to tourists hit $790,000, which the winery counts as part of the $1.9 million revenue total for its tasting room.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 7, 2026
The historic city of Krakow in southern Poland -- once Poland's capital -- attracts millions of tourists annually.
From Barron's ● Nov. 7, 2026
City officials have urged people who live in the city and tourists to stay away from the area while an investigation continues.
From BBC ● Nov. 7, 2026
The notorious airport is a tender spot for Angelenos and tourists.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2026
Owen smiled and waved at the tourists in the SUV as they passed, and they happily waved back.
From "Two Degrees" by Alan Gratz
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
