traffic

[ traf-ik ]

/ ˈtræf ɪk /

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See synonyms for: traffic / trafficked / trafficking / trafficker on Thesaurus.com

noun

the movement of vehicles, ships, persons, etc., in an area, along a street, through an air lane, over a water route, etc.: the heavy traffic on Main Street.

the vehicles, persons, etc., moving in an area, along a street, etc.

the transportation of goods for the purpose of trade, by sea, land, or air: ships of traffic.

trade; buying and selling; commercial dealings.

trade between different countries or places; commerce.

the business done by a railroad or other carrier in the transportation of freight or passengers.

the aggregate of freight, passengers, telephone or telegraph messages, etc., handled, especially in a given period.

communication, dealings, or contact between persons or groups: traffic between the Democrats and the Republicans.

mutual exchange or communication: traffic in ideas.

trade in some specific commodity or service, often of an illegal nature: the vast traffic in narcotics.

illegal commercial trade in human beings for the purpose of exploiting them: the traffic in young children.

verb (used without object), traf·ficked, traf·fick·ing.

to carry on traffic, trade, or commercial dealings.

to trade or deal in a specific commodity or service, often of an illegal nature (usually followed by in): to traffic in opium.

verb (used with object), traf·ficked, traf·fick·ing.

(of vehicles or persons) to move over or through (a place): It's a heavily trafficked bridge.

to trade or deal in (a commodity or service): to traffic guns.

to trade in (human beings) for the purpose of exploitation: He was convicted for trafficking illegal immigrants.

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“Was” is used for the indicative past tense of “to be,” and “were” is only used for the subjunctive past tense.

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Origin of traffic

First recorded in 1495–1505; earlier traffyk, from Middle French trafique (noun), trafiquer; (verb) from Italian traffico (noun), trafficare (verb), of disputed origin

synonym study for traffic

4. See trade.

OTHER WORDS FROM traffic

traf·fick·er, nountraf·fic·less, adjectivein·ter·traf·fic, noun, verb, in·ter·traf·ficked, in·ter·traf·fick·ing.un·traf·ficked, adjective

Words nearby traffic

traditor, traduce, traducianism, Trafalgar, Trafalgar, Battle of, traffic, trafficability, trafficable, trafficator, traffic calming, traffic circle

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use traffic in a sentence

Like all publishers, The Sun saw peaks in e-commerce in line with traffic growth while people observed sheltering orders.
Beyond the boom and bust cycle: How The Sun grew and stabilized its e-commerce revenue haul|Lucinda Southern|August 27, 2020|Digiday
Knewz isn’t sending much traffic to publishers yet, according to Chartbeat analysis of more than 3,500 of websites around the world by Chartbeat’s head of data science, Bonnie Ray.
Six months in, News Corp’s ‘Knewz’ aggregator has big ambitions|Lara O'Reilly|July 16, 2020|Digiday
According to BrightEdge research in B2B combined search averages 76% of traffic.
Five SEO content types to power and grow your business through 2020|Jim Yu|June 17, 2020|Search Engine Watch
Which means more traffic to be potentially turned into paying customers.
How to win at SEO with FAQ schema markup|Abhishek Shah|June 12, 2020|Search Engine Watch

Where you can take your traffic generation to another level is to combine Quora’s traffic with the traffic from Google search.
10 Advanced SEO tactics to drive more traffic to your website|Christian Carere|June 8, 2020|Search Engine Watch
One witness said the gunfire began after a traffic collision, which drew the attention of a nearby police officer.
France Mourns—and Hunts|Nico Hines, Christopher Dickey|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The scene was heavily cordoned off to traffic and anyone not with the police, press, or residents.
Police Hunt for Paris Massacre Suspects|Tracy McNicoll, Christopher Dickey|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
That apparently includes some members of the management of the airport itself and some air traffic controllers.
Annoying Airport Delays Might Prevent You From Becoming the Next AirAsia 8501|Clive Irving|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
That officer believed my fair-skinned son was white, according to the traffic citation I examined.
What Would Happen if I Got in White Cop’s Face?|Goldie Taylor|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Still, I worry that a simple traffic stop could have tragic consequences.
What Would Happen if I Got in White Cop’s Face?|Goldie Taylor|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In this traffic he made money so fast that he opened an office, and subsequently a store of his own, in the Escolta.
The Philippine Islands|John Foreman
Railway expectations ran high; immense traffic receipts, sorely needed, ought to have swelled the coffers of the companies.
Fifty Years of Railway Life in England, Scotland and Ireland|Joseph Tatlow
Reasonable facilities for receiving and forwarding traffic The subject of undue preference, which was forbiddenp.
Fifty Years of Railway Life in England, Scotland and Ireland|Joseph Tatlow
He was skilful in out-door railway work, and an adept in managing trains and traffic.
Fifty Years of Railway Life in England, Scotland and Ireland|Joseph Tatlow
They also took advantage of the necessity of others, in miserly traffic in Beaver skins with the Savages.
The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents, Vol. II: Acadia, 1612-1614|Various

British Dictionary definitions for traffic

traffic

/ (ˈtræfɪk) /

noun

the vehicles coming and going in a street, town, etc
(as modifier)traffic lights

the movement of vehicles, people, etc, in a particular place or for a particular purposesea traffic

the business of commercial transportation by land, sea, or air
the freight, passengers, etc, transported

(usually foll by with) dealings or businesshave no traffic with that man

trade, esp of an illicit or improper kinddrug traffic

the aggregate volume of messages transmitted through a communications system in a given period

mainly US the number of customers patronizing a commercial establishment in a given time period

verb -fics, -ficking or -ficked (intr)

(often foll by in) to carry on trade or business, esp of an illicit kind

(usually foll by with) to have dealings

Derived forms of traffic

trafficker, nountrafficless, adjective

Word Origin for traffic

C16: from Old French trafique, from Old Italian traffico, from trafficare to engage in trade

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

traffic

Origin of traffic

synonym study for traffic

OTHER WORDS FROM traffic

Words nearby traffic

Words related to traffic

How to use traffic in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for traffic

Derived forms of traffic

Word Origin for traffic