trafficking

The word “trafficking” means the illegal trade of goods or people. In plain terms, illegal trading, most commonly used for drugs, weapons, or the exploitation of people.

Here is “trafficking” used in a sentence: “The organisation campaigns against human trafficking worldwide.”

“Trafficking” is a noun.

“Trafficking” is a fairly common word in modern English.

Smuggling means secretly moving goods or people across borders, and afterwards a smuggled person is usually free to go. Trafficking is the illegal trade of goods or people, and in human trafficking it centers on ongoing exploitation and control rather than just transport.

Both describe illegal trade, but dealing usually refers to selling drugs, often at a smaller or local level. Trafficking implies large-scale illegal trade of goods or people, frequently across regions or borders.

Trafficking is normally followed by in, as in trafficking in drugs or trafficking in weapons. It also appears in set compounds such as human trafficking and drug trafficking.

No. As the illegal trade of goods or people, trafficking can cover illegal dealing in drugs, weapons, or wildlife, as well as human trafficking. The intended meaning usually comes from the surrounding words.