backpacker

English

Etymology

From backpack +‎ -er.

Pronunciation

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Noun

backpacker (plural backpackers)

1. A traveler whose luggage consists of a backpack; especially, such a traveler who uses hostels, public transport, and other inexpensive services.
   • 2012 April 15, Neil Humphreys, “From Cool Dude to Sad Old Man”, in The New Paper, page 34:

     Among the ah bengs and ah lians, the mats and the minahs, the young expats and the backpackers, he stood out like a dozen guys on a male-only dance floor singing Dancing Queen (I'll never forgive Blur for ruining my 21st birthday).

   • 2022 January 12, Dr. Joseph Brennan, “Castles: ruined and redeemed by rail”, in RAIL, number 948, page 53:

     A decade ago, I was a backpacker entirely reliant on the railways as a means to see Britain, and with castles as my destination. Via trains alone, I was able to tick off nearly all of the castles that my English Heritage annual pass afforded me.

   • 2024 November 27, Jessie Yeung and Isaac Yee, “Laos detains foreign hostel staff over backpacker methanol poisonings as families and travelers demand answers”, in CNN‎^[1]:

     Eight staff members of a backpacker hostel in Laos have been detained by local authorities as they investigate the deaths of six foreign tourists from suspected methanol poisoning, according to state-affiliated media in the Southeast Asian country.

   • 2025 January 3, Kai Burkhardt, “The best rain jackets of 2025, tried and tested”, in CNN‎^[2]:

     Lots of pockets help with a commute, a storm hood is great if you get caught in a storm on a hike, weight and packability are essential for backpackers and if you’re a climber or biker, you’ll want a helmet-compatible hood.

2. A hostel offering accommodation for such people.
   • 2016, Craig J, Tame the Ego Before It Tames the Soul:

     We hardly ever stayed in backpackers as it was approximately double the cost of pitching a tent in a caravan park or nature reserve.

3. (music, slang) A fan or performer of backpack rap.
   • 2014, Geoff Harkness, Chicago Hustle and Flow: Gangs, Gangsta Rap, and Social Class:

     Blacks and Latinos were more likely to be gangsta rappers than backpackers.

   • 2017, Patrick Turner, Hip Hop Versus Rap: The Politics of Droppin' Knowledge, page 129:

     To him the white backpackers are abject, 'safari wiggers' who threaten to undo all his careful work at 'passing' in this culture. With their earnestness and clumsy naiveté they betray the scandalous truth of his posturing.

Derived terms

• begpacker
• bikepacker

Translations

a traveler

• Catalan: motxiller (ca) m, motxillera (ca) f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 背包客 (bēibāokè)

• Czech: baťůžkář m
• Danish: backpacker c, rygsækrejsende c, rygsækturist c
• Dutch: rugzakreiziger (nl) m, backpacker (nl) m
• Estonian: seljakotirändur, seljakotiturist
• Finnish: reppumatkaaja
• French: routard (fr)
• German: Rucksacktourist m, Rucksackreisender m; (specific sense of “usually young, hostel-dwelling traveller” also) Backpacker (de) m
• Hebrew: תרמילאי (he) m (tarmiláy), תרמילאית f (tarmiláyit)
• Italian: escursionista (it) m or f, saccopelista m
• Japanese: バックパッカー (bakkupakkā)
• Korean: 배낭여행객 (baenang'yeohaenggaek), 백패커 (baekpaekeo)
• Latvian: please add this translation if you can
• Lithuanian: please add this translation if you can
• Mongolian: please add this translation if you can
• Polish: turysta z plecakiem m, turystka z plecakiem f
• Portuguese: mochileiro m
• Russian: пе́ший тури́ст m (péšij turíst), пе́шая тури́стка f (péšaja turístka), бэкпэ́кер m (bɛkpɛ́ker)
• Spanish: mochilero (es) m, mochilera (es) f
• Swedish: backpacker (sv) c, ryggsäcksturist c
• Vietnamese: Tây ba lô (vi) (Western)

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from English backpacker.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbɛkˌpɛ.kər/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: back‧pac‧ker

Noun

backpacker m (plural backpackers)

1. backpacker

   Synonyms: rugzakreiziger, rugzaktoerist