ENGLISH
REFERENCE

traffic

US //ˈtɹæfɪk// UK //tɹˈæfɪk// traf·fic
  1. 1 vehicles on the road (n.)
    A1 Beginner

    the cars, trucks, and buses using a road at a particular time.

    the movement of vehicles or pedestrians along a public highway or transport route. Uncountable in this sense.

    Example

    I was late for work because the traffic was very heavy this morning.

    Example

    Commuters faced significant delays as the morning traffic slowed to a crawl following a minor collision on the main arterial road.

    Usage

    Always used with a singular verb.
    Pitfall
    There were many traffics on the bridge.
    There was a lot of traffic on the bridge.

    Traffic is an uncountable noun and does not have a plural form when referring to vehicles.

  2. 2 internet/data flow (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate Computing

    the amount of data or the number of people visiting a website.

    the volume of data, messages, or visitors moving through a computer network or website.

    Example

    The website crashed because it received too much traffic after the advertisement.

    Example

    Network administrators monitored the sudden spike in web traffic to ensure the servers could handle the increased load during the product launch.
Show 3 more sensesShow fewer
  1. 3 illegal trade (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate Law

    the secret and illegal buying and selling of goods, like drugs or weapons.

    the illicit exchange or commercial trade of prohibited goods or services.

    Example

    The government is trying to stop the illegal traffic of rare animals.

    Example

    International agencies collaborated to dismantle the network responsible for the illicit traffic of stolen antiquities across the border.
  2. 4 to trade illegally (v.)
    C1 Advanced Formal Law

    to buy or sell something illegally.

    to engage in the illicit exchange of goods or people. Transitive when followed by an object.

    Example

    The gang was caught trying to traffic prohibited goods into the country.

    Example

    The defendant was charged with conspiracy to traffic controlled substances across state lines over a three-year period.

    Usage

    Often used in the form 'trafficking'. Note the 'k' added in the present participle and past tense.
  3. 5 congested (adj.)
    B1 Intermediate Dialect

    used to describe a road that is full of cars and moving slowly.

    describing a state of heavy congestion or blocked movement on a roadway.

    Example

    We should leave early because the highway is always very traffic at this hour.

    Example

    The driver warned us that the downtown area becomes incredibly traffic during the festival weekend.

    Teacher's tip

    This adjectival use is specific to Philippine English; in most other dialects, speakers say 'the traffic is heavy' rather than 'the road is traffic'.
Origin

From Middle French trafique, traffique (“traffic”), from Italian traffico (“traffic”) from trafficare (“to carry on trade”). Potentially from Vulgar Latin *trānsfrīcāre (“to rub across”); Klein instead suggests the Italian has ultimate origin in Arabic تَفْرِيق (tafrīq, “distribution, dispersion”), reshaped to match the native prefix tra- (“trans-”). The adjectival sense is possibly influenced by Tagalog trapik and follows a general trend in Philippine English to construct a noun from an adjective.

Idioms2 entries

© 2026 English Reference