交通
Meaning in Englishtraffic, transportation
Animated kanji stroke order
Related sentences
Word context
What it means
Traffic or transportation: the movement of people and goods through roads, rail, and other networks, and the system that enables such movement within a city or region.
Main meanings
- traffic flow: the movement of vehicles and pedestrians on streets and through intersections
- transport system: the network of services and facilities enabling travel
- traffic-related terms: phrases like traffic volume, traffic signals, and traffic rules
How to use it
Used in formal and technical discourse such as urban planning, traffic management, and transport engineering, as well as in everyday speech in compounds like 交通機関 and 交通渋滞; standalone usage is less common but understood.
Variants and close terms
- 輸送, yusō — transport of goods
- 運輸, unyu — conveyance and transport
- 交通機関, kōtsūkikan — means of transportation
- 交通網, kōtsūmō — transportation network
- 交通量, kōtsūryō — traffic volume
Composition
- 交: exchange, crossing; indicates interaction or crossing paths
- 通: to go through, to pass; indicates passage along a route or network
Etymology
On'yomi for 交 (kō) and 通 (tsū), combined to form kōtsū; a Sino-Japanese compound reflecting Chinese influence on Japanese vocabulary.
Origin
The concept emerged with urbanization and the expansion of transport networks; there is no single first usage date, but the modern sense of traffic and transportation was solidified during Japan's modernization era.
Word class
noun (名詞)