ticket

1 of 2

noun

tick·​et ˈti-kət 

1

a

: a certificate or token showing that a fare or admission fee has been paid

b

: a means of access or passage

education is the ticket to a good job

2

: a summons or warning issued to a traffic-law violator

3

: a list of candidates for nomination or election : slate

4

: the correct or desirable thing

cooperation, that's the ticket

—K. E. Trombley

5

: a slip or card recording a transaction or undertaking or giving instructions

a savings deposit ticket

6

a

: a document that serves as a certificate, license, or permit

especially : a mariner's or airman's certificate

b

: tag, label

ticketless

ˈti-kət-ləs 

adjective

ticket

2 of 2

verb

ticketed; ticketing; tickets

transitive verb

1

: to furnish or serve with a ticket

ticketed for illegal parking

2

: to attach a ticket to : label

also : designate

Synonyms

Noun

• check
• pass
• coupon
• certificate

Verb

• label
• mark
• stamp
• tag

Examples of ticket in a Sentence

Noun

We bought tickets for the opera.

I got a ticket for speeding.

Verb

He was ticketed for speeding.

methods used for ticketing airline passengers

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Nearly 215,000 other tickets sold in the United States also won prizes ranging from $10 to $150,000 in the drawing, the lottery said. —Don Sweeney, Miami Herald, 17 Aug. 2025

Disaster soon followed, though, as The Fantastic Four earned only $38.6 million domestically in its second weekend frame, Aug. 1-3, marking a 67% drop in ticket sales. —Tim Lammers, Forbes.com, 17 Aug. 2025

Verb

Air Canada passengers who are ticketed to travel between now and Aug. 22 can rebook travel at no extra cost for an alternative date between Aug. 23 and Sept. 30. —Suzanne Rowan Kelleher, Forbes.com, 18 Aug. 2025

Given the pressures of ticketing and towing from law enforcement, the situation becomes nearly unbearable. —Sean Geary, Mercury News, 13 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle French etiquet, estiquette note attached to something indicating its contents, from Middle French dialect (Picard) estiquier to attach, from Middle Dutch steken to stick; akin to Old High German sticken to prick — more at stick

First Known Use

Noun

1529, in the meaning defined at sense 6a

Verb

1611, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Phrases Containing ticket

• a one-way ticket to Dullsville
• big-ticket
• commutation ticket
• golden ticket
• high-ticket
• hot ticket
• just the ticket
• meal ticket
• one-way ticket
• parking ticket
• return ticket
• round-trip ticket
• scratch ticket
• season ticket
• speeding ticket
• split the ticket
• split ticket
• that's the ticket
• the ticket
• ticket agency
• ticket agent
• ticket office
• ticket-of-leave
• ticket tout
• traffic ticket
• write one's own ticket

Rhymes for ticket

• chicot
• cricket
• picket
• picot
• thicket
• wicket

Kids Definition

ticket

1 of 2 noun

tick·​et ˈtik-ət 

1

: tag entry 1 sense 4, label

price ticket

2

: a summons or warning issued to a traffic offender

got a ticket for speeding

3

: a paper or token showing that a fare or admission fee has been paid

4

: a list of candidates

5

: a slip or card recording a business deal

ticket

2 of 2 verb

1

: to attach a ticket to : label

2

: to give a traffic ticket to

Etymology

Noun

from obsolete French etiquet "a notice attached to something," derived from early French estiquier "to attach"; of Dutch origin — related to etiquette