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