transport
/ˈtrænspɔːt/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈtrænspɔːrt/ (ame, ipa) · /tran(t)s-ˈpȯrt ˈtran(t)s-ˌpȯrt/ (ame, mw) · /trænˈspɔːt/ (bre, ipa) · /trænˈspɔːrt/ (ame, ipa)
transport — noun
1. the moving of products, supplies, or passengers between locations, usually by ro
the moving of products, supplies, or passengers between locations, usually by road, railway, air, or sea.
The transport of fresh vegetables from farms to city markets happens overnight.
collocation: transport of [goods]
Nkechi works for a company that handles the transport of medical supplies across West Africa.
Road transport is often the cheapest option for moving furniture between cities.
Delays in the transport of raw materials stopped the factory for two days.
The government invested more money in public transport to reduce traffic jams.
- transportation
used interchangeably in American English, where 'transportation' is the more common noun form
- shipment
refers specifically to the goods being moved rather than the activity itself
- carriage
slightly more formal, often used in commercial or legal contexts
文法句型
uncountable noun
用法筆記
Often used with a modifier such as 'public', 'road', 'rail', or 'air' to specify the type of movement system involved. Uncountable in this sense — do not say 'a transport' to mean a vehicle.
常見錯誤
2. the set of vehicles, roads, railways, and other facilities that allow people and
the set of vehicles, roads, railways, and other facilities that allow people and goods to move around a place.
London has an extensive transport network that includes buses, trains, and the Underground.
collocation: transport network
Mateo cycles to work because he finds public transport too crowded in the morning.
collocation: public transport
The city's transport system was badly damaged by the flood last winter.
Trang checked the local transport options before booking her hotel in Taipei.
Many European cities encourage the use of green transport such as electric trams and bicycles.
- transportation
standard American English equivalent
- transit
often used for public transport systems, especially in North America ('mass transit')
- infrastructure
broader term that includes transport as one component
文法句型
uncountable noun
singular: a transport system / means of transport
用法筆記
This sense overlaps with noun sense 1 but focuses on the infrastructure and vehicles rather than the activity. In American English, 'transportation' is far more common for this sense.
常見錯誤
3. a powerful feeling of joy, delight, or emotional excitement that seems to sweep
a powerful feeling of joy, delight, or emotional excitement that seems to sweep you away.
The audience was in transports of delight after the orchestra finished the final piece.
phrase: in transports of [emotion]
Dahlia felt a transport of joy when she learned her brother had recovered.
Seeing the sunrise over the mountains filled the hikers with a sense of pure transport.
The novel's final chapter sent readers into transports of both sadness and wonder.
- despair
the emotional opposite — complete loss of hope
文法句型
in transports of [emotion]
uncountable: sense of transport
用法筆記
Often used in the plural form 'transports' with a following 'of' phrase ('transports of delight', 'transports of joy'). This sense is largely restricted to literary or formal writing and is not common in everyday conversation.
常見錯誤
transport — verb
- transportpresent simple I / you / we / they
- transports3rd person singular
- transporting-ing form
- transportedpast simple
1. to move products, supplies, or passengers between different locations, typically
to move products, supplies, or passengers between different locations, typically by road, rail, air, or sea.
The company transports fresh seafood from the coast to inland restaurants every morning.
pattern: transport + [goods] + from [place] to [place]
Helicopters were used to transport injured climbers down from the mountain.
Nikhil's job is to transport building materials from the warehouse to different construction sites.
The oil is transported by pipeline across three countries before reaching the refinery.
These buses transport school children from rural villages to the nearest town each day.
文法句型
transport + [goods/people] + [to/from location]
用法筆記
Can be used actively or passively. In passive constructions, the method of transport ('by truck', 'by air', 'by pipeline') is usually specified. The verb takes a direct object and is followed by a destination phrase beginning with 'to'.
常見錯誤
2. to send someone who has been found guilty of a crime to settle in a distant over
to send someone who has been found guilty of a crime to settle in a distant overseas colony as a form of punishment, as was done by Britain and other European countries in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Between 1788 and 1868, Britain transported about 160,000 convicts to Australia.
passive: be transported to [colony]
Christopher read about convicts transported to Botany Bay for stealing food.
The judge sentenced the prisoner to be transported to the American colonies for seven years.
Hao studied a museum display about Irish families transported to the Caribbean during the 1600s.
Records show that people were transported for minor crimes such as cutting down a tree.
文法句型
be transported to [colony] for [crime]
用法筆記
Restricted to historical contexts. The person was 'transported to' a colony, and the period of punishment was called a 'sentence of transportation'. This sense survives mainly in history books, museums, and historical fiction.
常見錯誤
3. to create such a strong feeling in someone through a book, film, piece of music,
to create such a strong feeling in someone through a book, film, piece of music, or similar experience that they feel as though they have entered another era or setting.
Reading the historical novel transported Eli back to the streets of Victorian London.
pattern: [artwork] transports [person] to [time/place]
The traditional music transported the audience to a small village in the mountains of Japan.
Sumin let the old photographs transport her to her grandmother's childhood home.
The film's scenery and soundtrack transported viewers to a peaceful island they had never seen.
A good memoir can transport its readers into the writer's own experiences and emotions.
- carry away
phrasal verb; more informal, often used in the passive ('I was carried away by the music')
- enchant
focuses on the pleasurable quality rather than the sense of relocation
- immerse
suggests deep involvement, especially in a story or activity, without the sense of physical relocation
文法句型
[experience/art] transports + [person] + to [time/place]
用法筆記
The subject is typically an artistic work or sensory experience (a book, film, song, smell, view). The object is the person affected, and the destination is introduced by 'to'. This sense is more common in reviews and descriptive writing than in everyday speech.