Meaning & use
expedition
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Meanings
nouncountable
An organized journey made by a group for a clear purpose such as exploration, research, or climbing.
Grammar: Usually takes an article or plural: an expedition, several expeditions; more purposeful than trip.
Patterns
- go on an expedition
- mount an expedition
- an expedition to somewhere
The team went on an expedition to map the glacier.
A scientific expedition studied coral damage after the storm.
nouncountable
The group of people and equipment sent on such a purposeful journey.
Grammar: Refers to the people as a unit: the expedition reached camp; contrast the journey itself.
Patterns
- the expedition reaches somewhere
- lead an expedition
- join an expedition
The expedition reached base camp after six days.
She joined an expedition led by two marine biologists.
Word forms
| plural | expeditions |
|---|
Common combinations
- go on an expedition
- They went on an expedition to collect rock samples from the canyon.
- mount an expedition
- The museum mounted an expedition to survey ancient ruins.
- expedition leader
- The expedition leader checked everyone's oxygen supply twice.
- polar expedition
- A polar expedition must plan carefully for weeks of darkness.
- rescue expedition
- A rescue expedition was launched when the radio went silent.
Synonyms and how they differ
- journey
- Journey is the general word for travel; expedition adds planning, purpose, and often a team.
- trek
- Trek suggests a long, difficult walk, while expedition is broader and can include ships, aircraft, or research goals.
- voyage
- Voyage usually means travel by sea or space; expedition can happen on land, sea, or ice.
- mission
- Mission stresses an assigned task or duty; expedition stresses organized travel to carry it out.
Word family
- expeditionary adjective
- Relating to a military or organized force sent abroad.
- expedite verb
- To make a process faster or easier; related by form, though not by the travel sense.
Commonly confused: expedition or exhibition?
expedition vs exhibition
An exhibition is a public display of art or objects; an expedition is a purposeful journey.
Practice
Which sentence uses expedition correctly for a planned research journey?
Choose one answer.
Option 1 has a purposeful group journey for research. Option 3 removes the planning and purpose that make an expedition, and the other options are unrelated uses.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “expedition”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.