tourism

noun

tour·​ism ˈtu̇r-ˌi-zəm 

1

: the practice of traveling for recreation

2

: the guidance or management of tourists

3

a

: the promotion or encouragement of touring

b

: the accommodation of tourists

Examples of tourism in a Sentence

The city developed the riverfront to encourage tourism.

She has a job in tourism.

Recent Examples on the Web

Eadie emphasized the importance of diversifying the region’s tourism base through sports, festivals and events to generate tourism revenue. — Reeti Malhotra, Sacbee.com, 1 July 2026

Koorimannil and his best friend had answered an ad online for jobs encouraging tourism to Thailand. — ABC News, 30 June 2026

The risk from mass tourism Indira Navarro, who leads a civilian group in Jalisco that searches for missing people, said disappearances of young girls often spike during large sporting events. — Michael Rios, CNN Money, 30 June 2026

Aksakal was accused of advertising a birth tourism scheme on Turkish-language social media pages. — Bart Jansen, USA Today, 30 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1811, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for tourism

• ism
• prism
• schism
• abolitionism
• aldosteronism
• americanism
• anticommunism
• antisemitism
• antiterrorism
• bioterrorism
• colloquialism
• colonialism

Kids Definition

tourism

noun

tour·​ism ˈtu̇(ə)r-ˌiz-əm 

: the practice of traveling for pleasure or the business of encouraging and serving such traveling