What does "tramp" mean?
A homeless person; a vagabond.
Tramp
/tɹæmp/ noun, verb, slang
noun, verb, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A homeless person; a vagabond.
- Grammar: tramp is listed as noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: hike, hobo, tramp steamer, airing.
- Useful contrasts: care, delicate step, drive.
- Usage evidence: Don't tramp in the living room with muddy feet.
How to use "tramp"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "tramp" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "tramp" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "tramp" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "tramp" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "tramp" is acting as noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "hike" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "tramp", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A homeless person; a vagabond. derogatory, sometimes
"[S]he had expected to discover a burglar of one or another accepted type—either a dashing cracksman in full-blown evening dress, lithe, polished, pantherish, or a common yegg, a red-eyed, unshaven, burly brute in the rags and tatters of a tramp."
- 2 Clipping of trampoline, especially a very small one. abbreviation, alt-of, clipping
- 3 a long walk usually for exercise or pleasure wordnet
- 4 A disreputable, promiscuous woman; a slut. derogatory
"I can't believe you'd let yourself be seen with that tramp."
- 5 a commercial steamer for hire; one having no regular schedule wordnet
Show 9 more definitions
- 6 Any ship which does not have a fixed schedule or published ports of call.
"I was so happy on board that ship, I could not have believed it possible. We had the beastliest weather, and many discomforts; but the mere fact of its being a tramp-ship gave us many comforts; we could cut about with the men and officers, stay in the wheel-house, discuss all manner of things, and really be a little at sea."
- 7 a heavy footfall wordnet
- 8 A long walk, possibly of more than one day, in a scenic or wilderness area. Australia, New-Zealand
"I got in with the American Fur Company and set out for another tramp to trade with the Indians on the North and South Platte Rivers."
- 9 a foot traveler; someone who goes on an extended walk (for pleasure) wordnet
- 10 Of objects, stray, intrusive and unwanted.
"Your last delivery of copper ore contained half a hundredweight of tramp metal."
- 11 a person who engages freely in promiscuous sex wordnet
- 12 A metal plate worn by diggers under the hollow of the foot to save the shoe.
- 13 a vagrant wordnet
- 14 Shaking or juddering of a vehicle's driving axle under hard acceleration or braking, caused by the suspension not fully restraining it, and leading to reduction in tire traction.
Verb
- 1 To walk with heavy footsteps.
- 2 move about aimlessly or without any destination, often in search of food or employment wordnet
- 3 To walk for a long time (usually through difficult terrain).
"We tramped through the woods for hours before we found the main path again."
- 4 cross on foot wordnet
- 5 To hitchhike.
Show 7 more definitions
- 6 travel on foot, especially on a walking expedition wordnet
- 7 To tread upon forcibly and repeatedly; to trample. transitive
- 8 walk heavily and firmly, as when weary, or through mud wordnet
- 9 To travel or wander through. transitive
"to tramp the country"
- 10 To cleanse, as clothes, by treading upon them in water. Scotland, transitive
"Soak them [blankets, etc.], add to the water in which the linens were washed some soap, and also some of the preparation to produce a strong lather; rub or tramp them, then rinse and dry."
- 11 To scram; begone. colloquial, intransitive
"She hesitated, “be off—tramp, march,” he exclaimed, in a tone which the poor girl dared not disobey. She left the room, and Edward followed her to the door."
- 12 To shake or judder under hard acceleration or braking, referring to the movement of a vehicle's driving axle caused by the suspension not fully restraining it, leading to reduction in tire traction. intransitive
Example
"Don't tramp in the living room with muddy feet."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "tramp"?
Common synonyms include: hike, hobo, tramp steamer, airing, alien, amble.
How do you use "tramp" in a sentence?
Don't tramp in the living room with muddy feet.
How do you pronounce "tramp"?
Pronounced /tɹæmp/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English trampen (“to walk heavily”), from Middle Low German trampen (“to stamp”) (trampeln (“to walk with heavy steps”), see trample) or from Middle Dutch trampen (“to stamp”), from Proto-West Germanic *trampan (“to step”). Doublet of tremp. Cognate with Dutch trampen (“to stamp, kick, step”), dialectal German trampen (“to step, walk, tread”), whence commoner German trampeln (“to trample”). Probably related to trap.
Etymology 2
Clipping of trampoline (ultimately related to the verb via German trampeln).