traveled or travelled; traveling or travelling
ˈtra-və-liŋ 
ˈtrav-liŋ
1
2
a(1)
: to move or undergo transmission from one place to another
goods traveling by plane
(2)
: to withstand relocation successfully
a dish that travels well
b
: to move in a given direction or path or through a given distance
the stylus travels in a groove
c
: to move rapidly
a car that can really travel
3
: to take more steps while holding a basketball than the rules allow
1
a
: to journey through or over
b
: to follow (a course or path) as if by traveling
2
: to traverse (a specified distance)
3
: to cover (an area) as a commercial traveler
see also:
USAGE
The forms traveled and traveling are typical in the US, while travelled and travelling are dominant everywhere else.
variants
or travelled
Examples of travel in a Sentence
Verb
The birds are traveling south for the winter.
His job requires him to travel frequently.
She enjoys traveling around Europe.
They traveled cross-country from New York to California.
The pain traveled down his back.
the way that sound travels in an empty room
That car was really traveling when it passed us.
The order is traveling by plane.
Recent Examples on the Web
Literary Hub, 9 June 2026
The driver allegedly sped away and crashed into an uninvolved OPD patrol car that was traveling northbound on 29th Avenue, near East 12th Street.
—Jose Fabian, CBS News, 9 June 2026
Sherrie Nachman, Forbes.com, 14 July 2025
Aquarius January 20 – February 18 The path less traveled is calling to you.
—Tarot.com, Baltimore Sun, 20 Jan. 2024
See All Example Sentences for travel
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Verb
The famous real-life 19th-century racehorse Lexington is at the center of this expansive novel that travels fluidly between antebellum South and modern-day Washington, DC.
—Literary Hub, 9 June 2026
The driver allegedly sped away and crashed into an uninvolved OPD patrol car that was traveling northbound on 29th Avenue, near East 12th Street.
—Jose Fabian, CBS News, 9 June 2026
Adjective
For a less traveled and more secluded Dominican Republic holiday, consider a stay at the Ocean Club, one of Marriott’s Luxury Collection properties.
—Sherrie Nachman, Forbes.com, 14 July 2025
Aquarius January 20 – February 18 The path less traveled is calling to you.
—Tarot.com, Baltimore Sun, 20 Jan. 2024
See All Example Sentences for travel
Cite this Entry
“Travel.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/travel. Accessed 11 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
travel
2 of 2 noun1
a
: the act or means of traveling
air travel is fast
b
: journey entry 1, trip
—often used in plural
2
plural
: an account of one's travels
Etymology
Verb
Middle English travailen "torment, labor, strive, journey," from early French travailler "torment, labor," from an unrecorded Latin verb tripaliare "to torture," from Latin tripalium "an instrument of torture," literally "three stakes," derived from tri- "three" and palus "stake, pale" — related to pale entry 3, travail
Word Origin
With our modern cars, ships, and airplanes and our many restaurants and hotels, travel today is not difficult. But in the Middle Ages roads were poor and places to eat and sleep were far apart. Travel was hard, uncomfortable work—even torture. In fact, our word travel comes from a Latin word that meant "torture." Many devices were used in the Middle Ages for torture in an effort to force confessions from persons accused of crimes. One of these devices, called in Latin a tripalium, gave us our word travel. The word tripalium, literally "three stakes," was derived from Latin tri-, meaning "three" and palus, meaning "stake, pale." This word is thought to have been the source of the Latin verb tripaliare, meaning "to torture." In early French the word became travailler, with both the meaning "to torment" and the meaning "to work hard." This early French word was taken into Middle English as travailen, with the meaning "to work hard" and "to travel." In time these two meanings became separated into different words, travail, which means "hard work," and travel, which means "to go on a trip."
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
