traffic, v. i. [F. trafiquer; cf. It. trafficare, Sp. traficar, trafagar, Pg. traficar, trafegar, trafeguear, LL. traficare; of uncertain origin, perhaps fr. L. trans across, over + -ficare to make (see -fy, and cf. G. Übermachen to transmit, send over, e. g., money, wares); or cf. Pg. trasfegar to pour out from one vessel into another, OPg. also, to traffic, perhaps fr. (assumed) LL. vicare to exchange, from L. vicis change (cf. Vicar).].

To pass goods and commodities from one person to another for an equivalent in goods or money; to buy or sell goods; to barter; to trade. [1913 Webster]
To trade meanly or mercenarily; to bargain. [1913 Webster]

traffic, v. t.

To exchange in traffic; to effect by a bargain or for a consideration. [1913 Webster]

traffic, n. [Cf. F. trafic, It. traffico, Sp. tráfico, tráfago, Pg. tráfego, LL. traficum, trafica. See Traffic, v.].

Commerce, either by barter or by buying and selling; interchange of goods and commodities; trade. [1913 Webster]
" This word, like trade, comprehends every species of dealing in the exchange or passing of goods or merchandise from hand to hand for an equivalent, unless the business of relating may be excepted. It signifies appropriately foreign trade, but is not limited to that." [1913 Webster]

"A merchant of great traffic through the world." [1913 Webster]

"The traffic in honors, places, and pardons." [1913 Webster]
Commodities of the market. [1913 Webster]
"You 'll see a draggled damsel
From Billingsgate her fishy traffic bear." [1913 Webster]
The business done upon a railway, steamboat line, etc., with reference to the number of passengers or the amount of freight carried. [1913 Webster]

Traffic return, a periodical statement of the receipts for goods and passengers, as on a railway line. -- Traffic taker, a computer of the returns of traffic on a railway, steamboat line, etc.

top

OXFORD DICTIONARY

traffic, n. & v.
--n.
1 (often attrib.) a vehicles moving in a public highway, esp. of a specified kind, density, etc. (heavy traffic on the M1; traffic warden). b such movement in the air or at sea.
2 (usu. foll. by in) trade, esp. illegal (the traffic in drugs).
3 a the transportation of goods, the coming and going of people or goods by road, rail, air, sea, etc. b the persons or goods so transported.
4 dealings or communication between people etc. (had no traffic with them).
5 the messages, signals, etc., transmitted through a communications system; the flow or volume of such business.
--v. (trafficked, trafficking)
1 intr. (usu. foll. by in) deal in something, esp. illegally (trafficked in narcotics; traffics in innuendo).
2 tr. deal in; barter.

Idiom

traffic circle US a roundabout. traffic cop esp. US colloq. a traffic policeman. traffic island a paved or grassed area in a road to divert traffic and provide a refuge for pedestrians. traffic jam traffic at a standstill because of roadworks, an accident, etc. traffic-light (or -lights or -signal) a usu. automatic signal controlling road traffic esp. at junctions by coloured lights. traffic sign a sign conveying information, a warning, etc., to vehicle-drivers. traffic warden Brit. a uniformed official employed to help control road traffic and esp. parking.

Derivative

trafficker n. trafficless adj.

Etymology

F traf(f)ique, Sp. tr{aacute}fico, It. traffico, of unkn. orig.

top

THESAURUS

traffic

ESP, answer, balance of trade, bargain, barter, be in, big business, black-market, bootleg, business, business dealings, buy and sell, carry, change, closeness, commerce, commercial affairs, commercial relations, communication, communion, congress, connection, contact, conversation, converse, conveyance, correspondence, custom, deal, deal in, dealing, dealings, do business, exchange, fair trade, familiarity, free trade, freight, give in exchange, handle, horse-trade, industry, information, interaction, interchange, intercommunication, intercommunion, intercourse, interplay, intimacy, job, linguistic intercourse, market, marketing, mercantile business, merchandise, merchantry, message, moonshine, movement, multilateral trade, push, reciprocal trade, relations, relationship, reply, response, restraint of trade, retail, sell, shipping, shove, small business, social intercourse, speaking, speech, speech circuit, speech situation, swap, swap horses, switch, take in exchange, talking, telepathy, the business world, the marketplace, touch, trade, trade in, trade off, trade sight unseen, traffic in, transport, transportation, travel, truck, two-way communication, unilateral trade, wholesale

top

ROGET THESAURUS

traffic

Barter

N barter, exchange, scorse, truck system, interchange, a Roland for an Oliver, quid pro quo, commutation, composition, Indian gift, trade, commerce, mercature, buying and selling, bargain and sale, traffic, business, nundination, custom, shopping, commercial enterprise, speculation, jobbing, stockjobbing, agiotage, brokery, deal, dealing, transaction, negotiation, bargain, free trade, commercial, mercantile, trading, interchangeable, marketable, staple, in the market, for sale, wholesale, retail, across the counter, cambio non e furto.

VB barter, exchange, swap, swop, truck, scorse, interchange, commutate, compound for, trade, traffic, buy and sell, give and take, nundinate, carry on a trade, ply a trade, drive a trade, be in business, be in the city, keep a shop, deal in, employ one's capital in, trade with, deal with, have dealings with, transact business with, do business with, open an account with, keep an account with, bargain, drive a bargain, make a bargain, negotiate, bid for, haggle, higgle, dicker, chaffer, huckster, cheapen, beat down, stickle, stickle for, out bid, under bid, ask, charge, strike a bargain, speculate, give a sprat to catch a herring, buy in the cheapest and sell in the dearest market, buy low and sell high, corner the market, rig the market, stag the market.

Also see definition of "traffic" in Bible Study Dictionaries

For further exploring for "traffic" in Webster Dictionary Online