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Definition of tour

 (Entry 1 of 2)

Definition of tour  (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

intransitive verb

• peregrinate

Examples of tour in a Sentence

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tour.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Middle English, from Anglo-French tur, tourn turning, circuit, journey — more at turn

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2b

1708, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Phrases Containing tour

• Cook's tour
• package tour
• tour de force
• tour of inspection

Dictionary Entries Near tour

Cite this entry.

“Tour.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary , Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tour. Accessed 26 Apr. 2024.

Kids Definition

Kids definition of tour.

Kids Definition of tour  (Entry 2 of 2)

More from Merriam-Webster on tour

Nglish: Translation of tour for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of tour for Arabic Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about tour

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Pronunciation (US):    (GB): 

Ipa (us): .

  Dictionary entry overview: What does on tour mean?  

• ON TOUR (noun)   The noun ON TOUR has 1 sense:

  Familiarity information: ON TOUR used as a noun is very rare.

  Dictionary entry details  

• ON TOUR (noun)

Sense 1

Travelling about

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

on the road ; on tour

Context example:

they lost all their games on the road

Hypernyms ("on tour" is a kind of...):

travel ; traveling ; travelling (the act of going from one place to another)

• Cambridge Dictionary +Plus

Meaning of tour in English

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• break-journey
• circumnavigation

You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

• She spent three months touring her empire .
• The prime minister toured the flooded regions .
• I spent a month touring round Europe .
• around Robin Hood's barn idiom
• baggage drop
• communication
• first class
• peripatetically
• public transportation
• super-commuting

Related word

Tour | intermediate english, tour | business english, examples of tour, collocations with tour.

These are words often used in combination with tour .

Click on a collocation to see more examples of it.

Translations of tour

Get a quick, free translation!

Word of the Day

of or relating to birds

Dead ringers and peas in pods (Talking about similarities, Part 2)

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Definition of tour noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

• a walking/sightseeing/bus tour
• tour of/round/around something a coach tour of northern France
• They embarked on a tour around the country.
• a tour operator (= a person or company that organizes tours)
• a business trip
• a five-minute trip by taxi
• a long and difficult journey across the mountains
• a tour of Bavaria
• the first expedition to the South Pole
• We went on an all-day excursion to the island.
• The children were on a day’s outing from school.
• We had a day out at the beach.
• a(n) foreign/​overseas trip/​journey/​tour/​expedition
• a bus/​coach/​train/​rail trip/​journey/​tour
• to go on a(n) trip/​journey/​tour/​expedition/​excursion/​outing/​day out
• to set out/​off on a(n) trip/​journey/​tour/​expedition/​excursion
• to make a(n) trip/​journey/​tour/​expedition/​excursion
• have/​take (British English) a holiday/ (North American English) a vacation/​a break/​a day off/ (British English) a gap year
• go on/​be on holiday/​vacation/​leave/​honeymoon/​safari/​a trip/​a tour/​a cruise/​a pilgrimage
• go backpacking/​camping/​hitchhiking/​sightseeing
• plan a trip/​a holiday/​a vacation/​your itinerary
• book accommodation/​a hotel room/​a flight/​tickets
• have/​make/​cancel a reservation/ (especially British English) booking
• rent a villa/ (both British English) a holiday home/​a holiday cottage
• (especially British English) hire/ (especially North American English) rent a car/​bicycle/​moped
• stay in a hotel/​a bed and breakfast/​a youth hostel/​a villa/ (both British English) a holiday home/​a caravan
• cost/​charge $100 a/​per night for a single/​double/​twin/​standard/ (British English) en suite room
• check into/​out of a hotel/​a motel/​your room
• pack/​unpack your suitcase/​bags
• call/​order room service
• cancel/​cut short a trip/​holiday/​vacation
• apply for/​get/​renew a/​your passport
• take out/​buy/​get travel insurance
• catch/​miss your plane/​train/​ferry/​connecting flight
• fly (in)/travel in business/​economy class
• make/​have a brief/​two-day/​twelve-hour stopover/ (North American English also) layover in Hong Kong
• experience/​cause/​lead to delays
• check (in)/collect/​get/​lose (your) (especially British English) luggage/ (especially North American English) baggage
• be charged for/​pay excess baggage
• board/​get on/​leave/​get off the aircraft/​plane/​ship/​ferry
• taxi down/​leave/​approach/​hit/​overshoot the runway
• experience/​hit/​encounter severe turbulence
• suffer from/​recover from/​get over your jet lag/​travel sickness
• attract/​draw/​bring tourists/​visitors
• encourage/​promote/​hurt tourism
• promote/​develop ecotourism
• build/​develop/​visit a tourist/​holiday/ (especially British English) seaside/​beach/​ski resort
• work for/​be operated by a major hotel chain
• be served by/​compete with low-cost/ (especially North American English) low-fare/​budget airlines
• book something through/​make a booking through/​use a travel agent
• contact/​check with your travel agent/​tour operator
• book/​be on/​go on a package deal/​holiday/​tour
• buy/​bring back (tacky/​overpriced) souvenirs
• We met a group of Italians on a tour in Peru.
• They made a whistle-stop tour of the five major towns.
• This summer we went on a walking tour around Provence.
• We're going on a tour of Bavaria.
• You can join an organized tour or you can visit independently.
• I'd like to do a tour of Belgium on foot.
• international
• on (a) tour
• tour of duty

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Look up any word in the dictionary offline, anytime, anywhere with the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary app.

Tour Operator Terminology

On this page we’ll try to clearly define the terms you need to know to run a tour business, and interact in our  Tourpreneur Facebook Group .

General Tour Industry Terms

• Tour This is a catch-all term that implies a type of travel experience that takes place over time, generally visiting multiple sights. It could last 1 hour or 30 days, and be done as a walk, or in vehicle. It could be a solo traveler or a group of 50 people. Other words might be used to describe the same thing:  tour, experience, journey, excursion , etc. It usually implies something organized, either by the traveler themselves, or a tour operator, who designs and delivers a tour for a traveler or group of travelers.
• Guest/Customer/Client/Passenger/Participant/Traveler Thanks to Disney,  guest  is what we generally use to refer to our customers. Why the difference? “Customer” implies a financial relationship, whereas  guest  relates more to a personal connection and a sense of welcome and hospitality. But it’s the same as customer, passenger (PAX), traveler, etc., and different companies will prefer different terminology.
• Guide / Tour Guide / Tourist Guide “tour guide” is used more often in Anglophone countries, especially in the U.S., whereas “Tourist Guide” is used in Europe and elsewhere globally.
• Tour Leader/Tour Director/Tour Manager/Tour Escort/Trip Leader This role goes by many different names. It refers to a guide who works over multiple days, usually traveling with a group of guests to multiple cities or regions. In addition to delivering commentary about the locations visited, a tour leader also handles the tour logistics, including working with the motor coach driver, staying on schedule, checking into hotels, meals and activities on time. 
• Interpreter A guide working often at National Parks or heritage sights; interpretation theory is a 100-year old body of theoretical work focused on strategies for helping individuals make their audience connect with and care for the site that’s being interpreted.
• Docent The name sometimes used for a guide usually in a museum or cultural heritage sight.
• Day Tour A type of experience that begins and ends in the same day. Usually used to distinguish an experience from a multi-day tour.
• Multi-Day Tour Any type of experience that lasts for more than one day. Often includes hotels, meals, short activities, and a form of transportation.
• Package Tour A kind of experience (usually multi-day) in which several different components are bundled together: it may or may not include airfare, hotels, guided experiences, meals, etc.
• Group Tour You’ll see these terms used differently to a kind of experience in which separate individuals or smaller groups come together to share an experience. Group tours can be  public  or  private .
• Public Tour As the name implies, this is a tour that’s open to the general public to sign up. The tour therefore consists of a variety of people who don’t already know each other. A public tour is usually offered at a set time and day.
• Private Tour A tour that is sold specifically to an already-organized group of travelers who don’t wish to experience the tour with others. A private tour might be a couple, a small group of friends, or a large church group. Private tours might be at a set time, or organized according to group’s specific needs.
• Custom Tour A custom tour is usually also a private tour.  Custom  refers to the operator crafting an experience customized to the specific demands of a client. A tour operator might be engaged by a client to design a unique experience, for one person or a large group.
• Pre-Formed/Affinity Group These are commonly used terms in the multi-day tour space to refer to a group tour not made up of individual solo travelers & couples, but instead of an alread-formed large group of travelers. An “affinity group” shares a common trait—they belong to a church, a retirement community, or a family reunion traveling together, for example. A pre-formed group might also be created by a “Group Leader” who sells a tour  for  a tour operator ,  often in exchange for a free trip or a commission.
• Escorted Tour Used most often in the multi-day tour space, an escorted tour means you’re traveling with an escort (old fashioned term), more commonly referred to today as a tour manager, tour director, tour leader, or trip leader. The TM’s job is to handle the logistics of keeping the group together, checked into hotels, arranging meals, etc. They work  for  the tour operator.
• Guided Tour In short, an organized excursion led by an individual or individuals. “Tour Guide” is the generalized term, but a guide could be a museum “docent” or an adventure guide, tour leader, etc.
• Self-Guided Tour This has two different meanings, one related to technology, one related to nature. When talking about mobile phone apps, a self-guided tour is one usually done in-destination using audio recordings and GPS data to guide an individual along a tour route, sharing recorded stories. In the world of adventure tours, a self-guided tour happens when an individual hires a tour operator to provide guidance in the form of itineraries, maps, possibly technology, all to facilitate an extended journey involving walking, hiking, biking, etc.
• FAM Tour A “familiarization” tour, focused on helping one set of professionals (travel agents, for example) learn about a destination, or about vendors in an area. A group of tour guides might take a FAM tour to a new attraction that opened in town, to become familiar with it. A group of travel agents might sign up for a FAM to a destination that they’ll then sell to clients.
• FIT Tour Very confusing term. It’s evolved over time. It once meant “foreign independent travel” but now is more often thought of as “flexible independent travel.” The goal is to distinguish this kind of independent traveler from someone who buys into a packaged group tour. FIT is more associated with a client who engages with a travel agent or operator to design something that suits their specific customized needs. 
• Activity An activity is usually different than a tour in that it is less about guided sightseeing and more about doing something, well, activity based. Examples might be watersports, biking, hiking, etc.
• Attraction Think amusement parks, museums, and the Eiffel Tower. What do they all have in common? They require tickets, they’re single place-based experiences, and rather than do them in groups, thousands of people pour in at once, with no specific booked time requirements (unless doing so for crowd control or pandemic related reasons).
• “Tours & Activities Industry” This is just one of many ways to talk about our industry. You’ll also hear Tours, Attractions & Activities, 
• DMO/CVB/Tourism Board A Tourism Board or Destination Marketing Organization (DMO) or Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB) are all essentially the same thing. — an organization (public, private, or a mix) whose goal it is to promote a destination, be it a city, region or country. Examples include  NYC & Company  and  Visit Scotland .
• MICE Pronounced like the animal, stands for Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Events. From a tour perspective, this is where an operator might work with a CVB (see above) to organize tours for business customers hosting or attending a conference in a location. Incentive tours are reward experiences that a company offers a group of employees.
• B2B Tour operators who work with other operators 

Types of Tour Operators

• Tour Operator A business that organizes and sells tours. They sell to a customer, and possibly work with vendors (hotels, restaurants, vehicle companies, etc.) to create an organized tour experience. In short, operators do the grunt work.
• Travel Agent/Agency In general, an agency works with travelers, and books travel components to relieve the traveler’s burden of figuring it out on their own. An agency might book a tour operator’s tour as part of the services they provide the travel, in exchange for a commission from the operator.
• [insert word here]  Operator Tour Operator is a general term, but that’s not the only kind of operator out there. You might also be an adventure operator, watersports operator, ATV rental operator, you name it. But in all cases, you’re not an agency booking someone else’s service, you’re providing the service yourself.
• Day (or Multi-Day) Tour Operator Both are subsets of “tour operators” in general. It might be used in the Tourpreneur community when we’re referring to the specific challenges of a specific kind of operator, since the products and challenges of each type of tour can be very different.
• Inbound / Receptive Operator /  DMC (destination management company) These are all versions of the same thing, with terminology that is sometimes preferred over the other words for various reasons. This kind of tour operator creates experiences in a certain location (often a specific city or a region or country), working B2B with tour operators or corporate entities needing local knowledge and connections.  Receptive operator  is an older term meaning they “receive” clients who are coming in (or inbound) from somewhere else.
• Outbound Operator This version of tour operator (usually multi-day) designs experiences that take guests elsewhere. An outbound operator might be based somewhere (Australia, for example) but focus on creating trips that send their Australian customers outbound to other countries.

Sales, Marketing & Software Terms

• SEO Search Engine Optimization—the art of optimizing your website and online presence to bring your content to the top of search engine results (principally Google).
• PPC Means “Pay-per-click” and references the kind of digital advertising done by companies like Google: you create an advertisement to appear in search engine results, for example, and you pay for that ad a specific market rate each time someone clicks on your link.
• OTA Online Travel Agency—this is a catch-all term for a wide variety of online marketplaces servicing the travel industry, selling everything from rental cars to flights to hotels to tours. An OTA in the general industry might refer to big players like Expedia or Booking.com; in the tour industry, it refers to companies like Viator (the largest tour OTA) and GetYourGuide. There is a long tail of “niche OTAs” that serve specific types of tours and activities (like watersports) or a specific region.
• Online Marketplace / Platform This is a more general term for the kind of website platform (like Viator) that sells a wide variety of tours online. Think Guide Marketplaces like ToursByLocals or Withlocals, companies that curate large amounts of guides, but aren’t traditional OTAs like viator.
• Restech/Booking Software You’ll hear “restech” (alternately reztech, rez-tech, etc…) as a fast way to refer to the software industry centered around creating helping tour operators accept online bookings, and keep those bookings organized. The largest companies in this space work mainly with day tour operators.
• Tour Operator Software Different than booking software/restech, TO software offers an extended suite of features meant to help operators across their whole business, from operators to itinerary proposals to budgeting and pricing. This software may include a booking/payment component, but is a much more fully integrated and holistic (and expensive) solution.
• SaaS Short for “Software as a Service” — this is how the tech industry refers usually subscription-based websites or software that help you do something. Examples of SaaS include booking software and CRMs.
• Supplier In the language of selling tours to customers on a platform, tour operators are suppliers; you  supply  tours that are then  re-sold  by the platform.
• Connectivity This is the dark art of how you, the operator (supplier) connect to sales channels.
• Distributor/Reseller These are sales channels that sell tickets to your tours on behalf of you. They could be everything from an online marketplace like Viator and GetYourGuide, to a personal travel agent or hotel concierge..
• Channel Manager This is software that helps you manager all your different sales channels in one place.

Taylor Swift's 'Tortured Poets' is hauntingly brilliant, even the 15 surprise songs

Taylor Swift ’s vulnerability is her superpower.

From the glorified diary entries of her 2006 debut to her 2024 album of the year Grammy winner “Midnights," she has proudly worn her heart on her sleeve.

That heart is bloodied and battered, but ultimately beating on “The Tortured Poets Department,” Swift’s 11th studio album that she surprise announced while collecting the first of two more Grammys in February.

Then came a bigger surprise when, at 2 a.m. Friday, Swift declared that "TTPD" was really a double album, with "The Anthology" tacked onto the the title and the addition of 15 songs to join the initial 16.

These 31 pensive pop tracks are the antithesis to “Lover.” Heartbreak and misery wrapped in melody. Rainbows faded into sepia tone. An era endured not enjoyed.

"TTPD" is bookended with a prologue – a poem by Stevie Nicks – and an epilogue framed as Swift’s summary report as the chairman of The Tortured Poets Department (Chaos, “leads the caged beast to do the most curious things,” she writes).

As she grapples with blame for the fizzling of a six-year relationship, she isn’t worried about pride. Former boyfriend Joe Alwyn is the obvious unnamed antagonist in most songs ("My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys"), though Swift shoulders plenty of culpability ("The Tortured Poets Department" title track).

With these songs, Swift pulls listeners into the depths of misery catalyzed by a public breakup while she staged the biggest concert tour in history. It's an exploration of extremes told with intimate details. Is this her “Tapestry" ? Her “Blue" ? Her “Like A Prayer" ?

Maybe the old guard still isn’t ready to anoint Swift to the echelon of Carole King and Joni Mitchell (Madonna? Absolutely). But “TTPD” springboards off Swift’s vibrant storytelling on “Folklore” and “Evermore” and spotlights the open-hearted confidence she presented on those musically minimalist albums.

Swifties can exhaust themselves excavating lyrical clues in the F-bomb-dropping “Down Bad” (“If I can’t have him, I might die”) and surmise if “But Daddy I Love Him” is funny or cruel (“I’m having his baby. No I’m not, but you should see your faces”), but it hardly matters.

Like the most successful artists in history – The Beatles and Beyoncé, perhaps – Swift is untouchable. Critic proof. Adored whether she unveils a masterpiece or a stopgap collection of songs.

“TTPD” falls closer to masterpiece territory, if not musically – similar cadences and production from Jack Antonoff and Aaron Dessner coat many songs with the same sheen – then lyrically.

It’s a bonafide headphones album, best experienced in the quiet to fully absorb the sadness and exasperation in Swift’s voice when she sings in the resentful “So Long, London,” (“I’m pissed off you let me give you all that youth for free”) and her ache on the melancholy piano ballad “Loml,” which will make your heart feel raked over with nails.

What guests does Taylor Swift have on her new album?

Post Malone is dancing closely to the fire known as "Call John Legend For a Feature" with his high-profile drops not only on Swift’s album, but Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter.”

While he offered a pedestrian contribution with Beyoncé, Posty fares better on “Fortnight,” the opening song on “TTPD” which he co-wrote with Swift and Antonoff.

A gentle thrumming in the background cushions Swift's darkly funny lyrics (“I was a functioning alcoholic ‘til nobody noticed my new aesthetic”) while Post Malone dips into the mesmerizing rhythm with some sweet vocals.

It’s also one of two songs to namedrop Florida. But the second, “ Florida!!! ,” co-written by and co-starring Florence Welch, is the standout, with Swift and Welch trading vocals over a stomping backbeat that is both cinematic and purposeful.

More: Taylor Swift name-drops Patti Smith and Dylan Thomas on new song. Here’s why

While it’s impossible to out-lyricize Swift, Welch nudges impressively close with her self-penned contribution: “Barricaded in the bathroom with a bottle of wine, well, me and my ghosts had a hell of a time.”

These two are ideal companions, musically and philosophically.

‘I Can Do it With a Broken Heart’ is one of Swift’s best Trojan horses

Synths flutter, an electro-pop beat pulses and the melody is structured as one of Swift’s trademark glistening pop gems.

But then the lyrics of “I Can Do it With a Broken Heart” kick in and Swift travels through the most potent psychological exploration of “the show must go on” since Smokey Robinson and The Miracles described “The Tears of a Clown” in 1967.

“I’m a real tough kid,” Swift sings, defiant as ever. “They said baby, gotta fake it til you make it … and I did.”

With humor and grace, Swift unfurls the anguish she hid while remaining very visible the past year, including blasting through an awe-inspiring three-hour show several nights a week on her world-spanning Eras Tour. But the song achieves liftoff with the dichotomy of Swift’s honeyed voice and her chant-singing, “I’m so depressed, I act like it’s my birthday, every day.”

It’s a clever entry into the complexity of mental health, and Swift, she of limitless ambition, flips her sorrow into something constructive, a Superwoman unbowed by pesky things like misery.

“I cry a lot but I am so productive,” she chirps, tongue firmly in cheek. “It’s an art … you know you’re good when you can do it with a broken heart.”

The capper is Swift declaring, “I’m miserable and no one even knows it!” as she laughs through the end of the song. But after recognizing what she’s endured, even her giggles lacerate.

More: All 11 of Taylor Swift's No. 1 songs ranked ahead of her 11th album release

Who is Clara Bow?

One of the most intriguing songs on “TTPD” is named for a 1920s-era silent film star and the layers run deep (paging all excavating Swifties!)

Is the choice of an actress who was seen and not heard on film a metaphor for her life with Alwyn, a cornerstone of which was privacy?

Or, as Swift sings from an observational post, does she merely resemble the alluring dark-lipsticked 20 th century star?

The wispy ballad finds Swift mimicking the words she (possibly) heard in her upstart years, such as “You look like Stevie Nicks ,” before the storyline comes full circle with a new rookie being told, “You look like Taylor Swift … you’ve got edge, she never did.”

It’s meta, yes, but Swift often subscribes to glancing back to lunge forward – always saturated in poetic sensitivity.

What is ‘The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology’?

The 15 additional songs Swift dropped a mere two hours after providing an emotional wallop with the first batch include four of the tracks already announced as bonuses: “The Manuscript,” “The Bolter,” “The Albatross” and “The Black Dog.”

Among the others, Swift is especially pointed on the gently swelling acoustic guitar-based “Chloe or Sam or Sophia or Marcus,” a song that seemingly references her fling with Matty Healy (she laments being unable to save someone who “needed drugs” and was always just out of reach).

Her strongest vitriol, however, is reserved for “Thank you, Aimee,” which fans surmise digs into her feud with Kim Kardashian . But Swift is bold and forthright when schooling “Aimee” about her success in spite of criticisms – a familiar, if still welcome, page from Swift’s playbook.

A trio of “name” songs – “Cassandra,” “Peter” and “Robin” – are all winsome ballads couched in pretty piano melodies. “Peter” is especially endearing with its waltzing rhythm and Swift’s warm vocals on this ode to a childhood friend (“The goddess of timing once found us beguiling,” she sings).

But a highlight is the bouncy “So High School,” which finds Swift singing and strumming guitar with the breezy glow of ‘ 90s-era Sheryl Crow. Is her focal point current paramour Travis Kelce ? Lyrics including “You know how to ball, I know Aristotle” and “I feel so high school every time I look at you,” are significant indications. But more importantly, the song pulls Swift out of the sludge and into the sun.  

Taylor Swift Reveals the Real Meaning Behind The Tortured Poets Department Songs

Taylor swift explained the meaning of the tortured poets department and provided succinct commentary on five of its tracks..

Taylor Swift thinks some things she'll never say, but she's explaining The Tortured Poets Department anyway. 

Days after releasing her 11th studio album, the "Fortnight" singer gave some insight into some of her record's more convoluted tracks—including the aforementioned single, " Clara Bow " and "Florida!!!"—in Amazon Music-exclusive commentary. 

Users of the streaming platform can declare, "I'm a member of The Tortured Poets Department ," on their Amazon device and switch on the special feature, during which Taylor provides her insight on five songs, including the album opener featuring Post Malone .  

"‘Fortnight' is a song that exhibits a lot of the common themes that run throughout this album," she explains. "One of which being fatalism—longing, pining away, lost dreams. It's a very fatalistic album in that there are lots of very dramatic lines about life or death. ‘I love you, it's ruining my life.' These are very hyperbolic, dramatic things to say. It's that kind of album."

Later, Taylor breaks down "My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys," a song she produced with longtime collaborator Jack Antonoff . Taylor explains, as the title suggests, the song is about "being somebody's favorite toy until they break you and then don't want to play with you anymore."

"Which is how a lot of us are in relationships where we are so valued by a person in the beginning, and then all of the sudden, they break us or they devalue us in their mind," she adds. "We're still clinging on to ‘No no, no. You should've seen them the first time they saw me. They'll come back to that.'"

And the "Florida!!!" singer even delved into her duet with Florence Welch , a song that was actually inspired by her love of Dateline . 

Jimmie Allen Details Welcoming Twins With Another Woman Amid Divorce

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Taylor Swift Has Given Fans a Lot. Is It Finally Too Much?

Swift has been inescapable over the last year. With the release of “The Tortured Poets Department,” her latest (very long) album, some seem to finally be feeling fatigued.

• Share full article

By Matt Stevens and Shivani Gonzalez

Four new studio albums. Four rerecorded albums, too. A $1 billion oxygen-sucking world tour with a concert movie to match. And, of course, one very high-profile relationship that spilled over into the Super Bowl .

For some, the constant deluge that has peaked in the past year is starting to add up to a new (and previously unthinkable) feeling: Taylor Swift fatigue.

And it is a feeling that has only solidified online in the days following the release of “The Tortured Poets Department,” which morphed from a 16-song album into a 31-song, two-hour epic just hours after its release .

Many critics (including The New York Times’s own) have suggested that the album was overstuffed — simply not her best. And critiques of the music have now opened a sliver of space for a wider round of complaint unlike any Swift has faced over her prolific and world-conquering recent run.

“It’s almost like if you produce too much… too fast… in a brazen attempt to completely saturate and dominate a market rather than having something important or even halfway interesting to say… the art suffers!” Chris Murphy, a staff writer at Vanity Fair, posted on X .

Which is not to say nobody listened to the album; far from it. Spotify said “Poets,” which was released on Friday, became the most-streamed album in a single day with more than 300 million streams .

And of course, many of Swift’s most ardent fans, known as “Swifties,” loved her 11th album or, at least, have decided to air any reservations in private conversations. The first days of the album’s release have been greeted with the usual lyrical dissections for key allusions hidden within the songs, attention to every word that few other artists receive.

But others, including some self-identified Swift fans, have freely admitted frustration. Fans and critics alike have contended that Swift’s lyrics have become a tad verbose and that the tracks on this latest album — many of them breakup songs — sounded a whole lot like others she has already put out . The internet has also provided an almost unlimited supply of jokes about the length of the album .

Some admonished Swift for selling so many versions of “Poets” only to double its size after those orders were in, part of a cynically corporate rollout . (Care for the CD , vinyl or the Phantom Clear vinyl ?) The Daily Mail cobbled together what it deemed “The 10 WORST lyrics in Taylor Swift’s new album — ranked!”

For its part, Reductress , the satirical women’s magazine, offered a post titled “Woman Doing Her Best to Like New Taylor Swift Album Lest She Face the Consequences.”

Those who dare to publicly criticize Swift are acutely aware of the potential for backlash. Murphy, the Vanity Fair writer, made a dark joke about it . At least one X user who posted a lengthy thread eviscerating Swift, the album and its rollout took the post private after it got more than three million views. Paste Magazine opted not to put a byline on its harsh review of Swift’s album, citing safety concerns for the writer.

In an unusual twist, even Swift herself is widely viewed as admonishing her most militant defenders in one particular song on the new album, “But Daddy I Love Him.” Some contingents of Swift’s fanbase strongly disapproved of her brief relationship with Matty Healy of the 1975 and appear to now be bristling at the amount of record real estate Healy consumes on the latest album .

Weird, complicated times in Taylor land.

“It might be a tough few days for the fanbase,” Nathan Hubbard, a co-host of the Ringer podcast, “ Every Single Album ,” wrote in a social media thread about “Poets” on Friday . “They’ll hear some valid criticism they aren’t used to (if the critics dare), and for many they’ll have to reconcile their own truth that this isn’t their favorite, while still rightly celebrating it and supporting her.”

Indeed, grinding through the 31-song double album after midnight had felt like “a hostage situation,” Hubbard wrote.

On a new podcast episode, which was released over the weekend, Hubbard and his co-host, Nora Princiotti, were among those who pointed out that while the album may be imperfect, Swift simply may have needed to purge herself of the songs on “Poets” to process a turbulent time in her life.

Princiotti said she enjoyed much of the album and was careful to stipulate that “Poets” did contain several “special songs.”

But she also allowed for some “tough love.”

“Musically, I do not really hear anything new,” she said, adding that Swift “could have done a little bit more self editing.”

“I don’t think the fact that this is a double-album that is more than two hours in length serves what’s good about it,” Princiotti said. “And I think that for the second album in a row, I’m still sort of left going, ‘OK, where do we go from here?’”

Princiotti ultimately graded “Poets” a “B.” And in the world of her podcast and universe of Taylor Swift, Princiotti acknowledged — that might have been an all-time low.

An earlier version of this article misstated the title of Taylor Swift’s new album. It is “The Tortured Poets Department,” not “The Tortured Poets Society.”

How we handle corrections

Matt Stevens writes about arts and culture news for The Times. More about Matt Stevens

Shivani Gonzalez is a news assistant at The Times who writes a weekly TV column and contributes to a variety of sections. More about Shivani Gonzalez

Inside the World of Taylor Swift

A Triumph at the Grammys: Taylor Swift made history  by winning her fourth album of the year at the 2024 edition of the awards, an event that saw women take many of the top awards .

‘The T ortured Poets Department’: Poets reacted to Swift’s new album name , weighing in on the pertinent question: What do the tortured poets think ?  

In the Public Eye: The budding romance between Swift and the football player Travis Kelce created a monocultural vortex that reached its apex  at the Super Bowl in Las Vegas. Ahead of kickoff, we revisited some key moments in their relationship .

Politics (Taylor’s Version): After months of anticipation, Swift made her first foray into the 2024 election for Super Tuesday with a bipartisan message on Instagram . The singer, who some believe has enough influence  to affect the result of the election , has yet to endorse a presidential candidate.

Conspiracy Theories: In recent months, conspiracy theories about Swift and her relationship with Kelce have proliferated , largely driven by supporters of former President Donald Trump . The pop star's fans are shaking them off .

Watch CBS News

Taylor Swift shocker: New album, "The Tortured Poets Department," is actually a double album

By Alex Sundby , Brian Dakss

Updated on: April 19, 2024 / 10:28 PM EDT / CBS News

Anticipation was growing at a fever pitch before Taylor Swift's latest album, " The Tortured Poets Department ," dropped at midnight EDT. But the pop superstar had a huge surprise on tap: It's actually a double album.

When Part One dropped, Swift wrote on Instagram , "All's fair in love and poetry... New album THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT. Out now 🤍"

Then came the shocker, revealed in an Instagram post saying , "It's a 2am surprise: The Tortured Poets Department is a secret DOUBLE album. ✌️ I'd written so much tortured poetry in the past 2 years and wanted to share it all with you, so here's the second installment of TTPD: The Anthology. 15 extra songs. And now the story isn't mine anymore… it's all yours. 🤍."

What's Taylor Swift's new album about?

Swift described the album as "new works that reflect events, opinions and sentiments from a fleeting and fatalistic moment in time — one that was both sensational and sorrowful in equal measure."

She also said that time has been "closed and boarded up. There is nothing to avenge, no scores to settle once wounds have healed. And upon further reflection, a good number of them turned out to be self-inflicted."

"Entertainment Tonight" correspondent Denny Directo called the record some of her most vulnerable work.

"Fans were left with more questions than there were answers, so good luck trying to decipher who these songs are about, what they mean," Directo told CBS News. "… I feel like there's more heartbreak songs on this than there are love songs."

Hours ahead of the record's release, Swift said on social media that its first single was "Fortnight," featuring Post Malone, and its music video was released Friday night .

Swift praised the Grammy-nominated artist's musical experimentation and melodies "that just stick in your head forever."

"I got to witness that magic come to life firsthand when we worked together on Fortnight," Swift said in her post .

"Fortnight" isn't the only track on the album on which Swift worked with another artist. Florence and The Machine is also featured.

What's on "The Tortured Poets Department" tracklist?

Swift posted an initial tracklist to social media in February one day after she announced the album at  the Grammys , where she won for best pop vocal album. Here's the list of all 31 songs:

• "Fortnight"
• "The Tortured Poets Department"
• "My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys"
• "So Long, London"
• "But Daddy I Love Him"
• "Fresh Out the Slammer"
• "Florida!!!"
• "Guilty as Sin?"
• "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?"
• "I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can)"
• "I Can Do It With a Broken Heart"
• "The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived"
• "The Alchemy"
• "Clara Bow"
• "The Black Dog"
• "imgonnagetyouback"
• "The Albatross"
• "Chloe or Sam or Sophia or Marcus"
• "How Did It End?"
• "So High School"
• "I Hate It Here"
• "thanK you aIMee"
• "I Look in People's Windows"
• "The Prophecy"
• "Cassandra"
• "The Bolter"
• "The Manuscript"

What are Taylor Swift's concert dates for The Eras Tour?

Swift resumes her wildly successful Eras Tour next month in Europe with shows scheduled for Austria, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the U.K. until August. In the fall, the tour returns to North America with performances in Indianapolis, Miami, New Orleans, Toronto and Vancouver, British Columbia.

Here are the dates for upcoming shows:

• May 9 Paris
• May 10 Paris
• May 11 Paris
• May 12 Paris
• May 17 Stockholm
• May 18 Stockholm
• May 19 Stockholm
• May 24 Lisbon, Portugal
• May 25 Lisbon, Portugal
• May 29 Madrid
• May 30 Madrid
• June 2 Lyon, France
• June 3 Lyon, France
• June 7 Edinburgh, Scotland
• June 8 Edinburgh, Scotland
• June 9 Edinburgh, Scotland
• June 13 Liverpool, England
• June 14 Liverpool, England
• June 15 Liverpool, England
• June 18 Cardiff, Wales
• June 21 London
• June 22 London
• June 23 London
• June 28 Dublin
• June 29 Dublin
• June 30 Dublin
• July 4 Amsterdam
• July 5 Amsterdam
• July 6 Amsterdam
• July 9 Zurich
• July 10 Zurich
• July 13 Milan
• July 14 Milan
• July 17 Gelsenkirchen, Germany
• July 18 Gelsenkirchen, Germany
• July 19 Gelsenkirchen, Germany
• July 23 Hamburg, Germany
• July 24 Hamburg, Germany
• July 27 Munich
• July 28 Munich
• Aug. 1 Warsaw, Poland
• Aug. 2 Warsaw, Poland
• Aug. 3 Warsaw, Poland
• Aug. 8 Vienna
• Aug. 9 Vienna
• Aug. 10 Vienna
• Aug. 15 London
• Aug. 16 London
• Aug. 17 London
• Aug. 19 London
• Aug. 20 London
• Oct. 18 Miami
• Oct. 19 Miami
• Oct. 20 Miami
• Oct. 25 New Orleans
• Oct. 26 New Orleans
• Oct. 27 New Orleans
• Nov. 1 Indianapolis
• Nov. 2 Indianapolis
• Nov. 3 Indianapolis
• Nov. 14 Toronto
• Nov. 15 Toronto
• Nov. 16 Toronto
• Nov. 21 Toronto
• Nov. 22 Toronto
• Nov. 23 Toronto
• Dec. 6 Vancouver, British Columbia
• Dec. 7 Vancouver, British Columbia
• Dec. 8 Vancouver, British Columbia
• Taylor Swift

Alex Sundby is a senior editor at CBSNews.com. In addition to editing content, Alex also covers breaking news, writing about crime and severe weather as well as everything from multistate lottery jackpots to the July Fourth hot dog eating contest.

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Taylor Swift draws backlash for 'all the racists' lyrics on new 'Tortured Poets' album

Taylor Swift released a new album Friday , but not all listeners are loving a controversial line from her new song, "I Hate It Here."

In the track off of "The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology," a deluxe version of her new album, the Eras Tour singer sings about discontent and the way our recollections are distorted by nostalgia. In it, she says she wants to return to an era that ended more than a century before her career began.

"My friends used to play a game where we would pick a decade we wished we could live in instead of this / I'd say the 1830s but without all the racists and getting married off for the highest bid," Swift sings in the track .

Start the day smarter. Get all the news you need in your inbox each morning.

What we know about Taylor Swift's 'The Tortured Poets Department' album so far

The Civil War began in 1861, more than 30 years after the decade Swift references in the song. Slavery was still active in the United States during this time.

"Everyone would look down 'cause it wasn't fun now seems like it was never even fun back then / Nostalgia is a mind's trick if I'd been there, I'd hate it," she sings. "It was freezing in the palace."

'So many wrong things about this:' Social media users react to Taylor Swift's 'I Hate It Here' lyrics

The controversial line has drawn the ire of the internet and fueled conversations around Swift's lyricism. Users on X, formerly known as Twitter, reacted to Swift's " I Hate It Here" lyrics .

"y’all .. there are so many wrong things about this," one user wrote, while posting a screenshot of the song's lyrics from Genius .

Slavery's explosive growth, in charts: How '20 and odd' became millions

"'I'd say the 1830s but without all the racists' now Taylor …" another user commented .

Other fans on X defended Swift's songwriting capabilities as historical analysis.

"It's an interesting commentary on how we sometimes idealize certain eras without fully considering the realities of living in them," one commenter said .

'The Tortured Poets Department' features 31 songs

Swift's 11th album "The Tortured Poets Department" features 31 songs, when you add in the 15-song deluxe version "The Anthology," which includes "I Hate It Here." The album draws on heartbreak and coming of age, traditional themes for one of the world's most famous people and songwriters.

Lead single "Fortnight" features rapper and singer Post Malone .

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Taylor Swift draws backlash for 'all the racists' lyrics on new 'Tortured Poets' album

Wesley Bryan finishes second at Corales Puntacana, earns another start

Kevin tway, peter kuest also finish top 10 to qualify for the cj cup byron nelson.

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YouTuber and PGA TOUR winner Wesley Bryan held the 54-hole lead at the Corales Puntacana Championship, and he carded a smooth 68 in the final round at Puntacana Resort & Club’s Corales Golf Course. In a long-awaited return to Sunday contention, the wily veteran met the moment – with a mustache and swagger to boot.

It wasn’t quite enough for a return to the winner’s circle, as Bryan finished solo second to Billy Horschel, who stampeded to a final-round 63 for a two-shot win at 23-under. Yet Bryan, 34, will take plenty of good from the week. Having entered the season on low-level past champion status (this was just his second start of 2024, having missed the cut at the Puerto Rico Open), these 165 FedExCup points will help immensely in the upcoming reshuffle of conditional members.

Wesley Bryan's strong finish secures solo second place at Corales Puntacana

With a top-10 finish, Bryan also secures a start at THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson in two weeks.

“Obviously excited, it was an amazing week, but bummed,” Bryan said afterward. “Definitely encouraged how the golf game was, how it held up under the pressure of a weekend leading a golf tournament. … Today just got beat, plain and simple. … Hats off to Billy.

“I didn't realize there were that many people that watched our YouTube videos down in the Dominican Republic, but that support was amazing. Online it's been great this week. … I feel like we made some more good content from this week and something to build off of professionally playing as well. Looks like we'll have some more opportunities to play throughout the year.”

Bryan’s sole TOUR title came at the 2017 RBC Heritage (ironically also being played this week), shortly after winning three times on the 2016 Korn Ferry Tour en route to Player of the Year honors. Golf came easy for him at the time. It hasn’t always been the same since; he went nearly six years without a top-10 finish on TOUR, a streak that he snapped with a solo sixth at last year’s Puerto Rico Open.

Wesley Bryan's breakout win at RBC Heritage

This week, things snowballed upward in a big way. Bryan started fast in Punta Cana with an opening-round, 9-under 63, which he backed up with scores of 69-66 into Sunday’s final round, when he made five birdies against one bogey. The University of South Carolina alum finished in style with a 30-foot birdie at the 72nd hole, followed by congratulations from his wife Elizabeth and their three young children who made the trip.

The Bryans shared a rental house this week with Ben Martin and family, and there was plenty of poolside relaxation to be had. It corresponded with good golf and good memories.

“For the girls to be out here this week, I mean, I could have finished dead last, but for them to be able to see daddy hit a few golf shots and kind of soak in what the atmosphere was I feel like was pretty special,” Bryan said. “For me, just having them out here, it's amazing.”

Bryan wasn’t the only conditional member to secure a spot at THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson, as fellow TOUR past champion Kevin Tway finished solo third at 19-under to assure another start in two weeks. Tway carded four rounds in the 60s in Punta Cana, notching his first TOUR top-10 since the Texas Children’s Houston Open in fall 2021.

Kevin Tway curls in an eagle putt at Corales Puntacana

Non-member Peter Kuest also punched his ticket to THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson with a tie for ninth at the Corales. Kuest earned his spot in Punta Cana with a T10 at the Valero Texas Open, into which he Monday qualified, and he has now parlayed that successful Monday into a third start.

Kuest, 25, is making a habit of this practice. Last year, he finished fourth at the Rocket Mortgage Classic to earn a spot at the John Deere Classic, where he finished T17 to earn Special Temporary Membership. This year, he still has plenty of work ahead to reach that mark; he now holds 110 non-member FedExCup points, with the Special Temporary Membership threshold for this season at 263 points (No. 150 on last year’s FedExCup Fall standings).

Nonetheless, Kuest has earned another chance to chase that mark.

Kevin Prise is an associate editor for the PGA TOUR. He is on a lifelong quest to break 80 on a course that exceeds 6,000 yards and to see the Buffalo Bills win a Super Bowl. Follow Kevin Prise on Twitter .

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Taylor Swift fans flock to London pub apparently referenced on new album

Staff at the Black Dog in Vauxhall ‘100% certain’ theirs is the pub mentioned in song of the same name

Last Thursday was shaping up to be a normal day for the Black Dog pub in south London , until its social media traffic mysteriously started ramping up.

The reason was that Taylor Swift’s new album had leaked, featuring a song that shared its name. Within an hour of its release, the small venue was deluged with excited fans, while its staff scoured CCTV for a sighting of the world’s biggest pop star.

Over the course of the weekend, thousands of devoted Swifties, as Taylor’s fans call themselves, descended on Vauxhall to feel closer to their favourite artist. The Black Dog’s lyrics reference spotting that an ex-boyfriend was entering the pub – most likely the British actor Joe Alwyn, who lives in the area.

Lily Bottomley, an events and social manager for SC Soho, the small hospitality group that owns the Black Dog, said the mention had taken the neighbourhood pub by surprise.

“I was like, wow, what a coincidence, that’s crazy. Then traffic got bigger, and then just exploded when her album went live. We created a TikTok, started posting, interacting with fans. We’re completely booked out this week and we’re nearly full for her tour dates. It’s been amazing for the business, the fans have been overwhelmingly positive,” she said.

The atmosphere was one of “celebration, super jovial, really good vibes” at the weekend, Bottomley said, adding that the pub had hired last-minute security to deal with the surge.

Bottomley said fans were particularly interested to learn whether it was Alwyn or Swift’s other British ex-boyfriend, Matty Healy, referred to in the song. She has confirmed that the pub has had “a certain blond regular in a few times”, in a coy reference to Alwyn’s hair colour.

She is “100% certain” the pub is the one referenced in the song, since Swift has previously talked about nights out in neighbouring Brixton.

She said: “We’ve been looking at past security footage [for Swift]. We haven’t found anything but you never know. I’ve heard that whenever she visits places she puts a cap on, so we could have missed it. We’d love to have her back.”

When the Guardian visited at the pub’s opening at midday on Monday, a steady stream of Swifties were paying their respects.

Emilia Linton, 24, and Katie McGowan, 28, had rushed to the Black Dog before flying home to Vienna, and were keen to secure some content for their Instagram Stories.

“It makes you feel the song more, because you know what she’s referencing,” Linton said. “She’s a lyrical genius, she introduced me to country, and she makes it cool to be a girl again.”

While McGowan had expected a dingier locals’ pub, Linton argued that the upmarket gastropub’s “sweet, girlie” ambience was more fitting.

The pair’s friend, Liz, 23, from Leeds, said: “It feels very like, if you’re American, what you’d think a pub was. I just don’t see Taylor Swift in a ’Spoons.”

She had previously enjoyed visiting the Beechwood cafe in LA, mentioned in a Harry Styles song, and was keen to recreate the experience. “I just love getting recommendations, from friends and stuff – including my close personal friend Taylor,” Liz said.

The trio welcomed fellow Swift fan Tyler Ewings, 18, on to their table. He was visiting from Plymouth. “I thought I’d come see what it’s like, take in the vibe of it,” he said. “Swifties are a very tight-knit community and actually kind of loving. If you go to a concert you’ll talk to loads of people outside the venue.”

He said the specificity of the pub’s mention made him feel more connected to Swift. “With London Boy she referenced all kinds of places in London, but to target one place, it feels like she’s gone in deeper.”

Julien Dimitrov, 30, had dragged his reluctant boyfriend to the pub on the final day of their holiday before returning to the Czech Republic. When he realised the Black Dog was in London, he was thrilled by the coincidence. “I immediately thought I must visit it,” he said.

The pub’s mention reflects all that he cherishes in Swift: “She’s so open, so friendly, so human, down to earth, relatable – even though she’s famous.”

• Taylor Swift

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Taylor Swift namedrops this Florida city on “The Tortured Poets Department.’ Where is Destin?

Destin's tourism department just hit a huge jackpot.

While Florida got a huge shoutout on Taylor Swift " The Tortured Poet's Department " album, the Northwest Florida city got an extra special nod in the song.

In her 11th studio album , Swift sings about escaping to the Sunshine State, with Florence + The Machine  by her side. Together, they both detail the sunny paradise in a haunting, brutal way that only Floridians know.

What were Taylor Swift's lyrics about Destin?

In the song " Florida !!!" with Florence + the Machine, Swift sings the lyrics:

"Little did you know your home's really only; A town you're just a guest in; So you work your life away just to pay; For a time-share down in Destin."

Where is Destin?

Destin is a city located along the Gulf of Mexico in Okaloosa County, right in the state's panhandle region. According to USA Today, the area is known as a tourist destination because of the gulf beaches, fishing and resorts. 

What is Swift's connection to Destin, Florida?

There is no direct connection to Destin for the popstar but Swift does have some ties to the state as a whole.

For starters, her father Scott Swift lives in a $4 million home in Pinellas County. Back in 2020, it was reported he fought a burglar who broke into the St. Pete penthouse.

Swift has also toured in Florida throughout her career, ever since her Fearless World Tour. That's not even counting the festivals she's played at early in her career, such as the Florida Strawberry Festival and Lehigh Spring Fest.

Taylor Swift & Travis Kelce? Nah. Florida, Eras Tour singer make one enchanted love story

So it's clear Swift loves Florida but do we love her? A report from sports betting website  Betway  last year revealed that Florida houses the most Swifties. According to Betway, Florida makes 5.5 million yearly searches about Taylor Swift, making it the No. 1 state in the U.S. That's roughly 81,910 searches per 10,000 residents.

What is Taylor Swift's song 'Florida!!!' about?

In “Florida!!!”, Swift and Florence offer up a suspense-filled track that highlights the beauty and brutality of the state, with lyrics aimed at escaping, washing away with hurricanes and bodies (metaphorically) sinking away in the swamp.

But what is the song actually about? Well, no one but Swift, her collaborators and closest confidants will know the answer but that doesn't stop Swifties from sleuthing. However, Swift did tell iHeart Radio that after getting inspiration from crime shows, she thought of where she'd go if she needed to reinvent herself.

"I think I was coming up with this idea of 'what happens when your life doesn't fit' or 'the choices you've made catch up with you' and you're surrounded by these harsh consequences and judgement," Swift said. "And circumstances did not lead you to where you thought you'd be."

Fans previously speculated the album was about Swift’s six-year relationship with English actor Joe Alwyn and their breakup. Many theorize that "Florida!!!" is about her Eras Tour shows at Tampa's Raymond James Stadium from April 13-15, 2023 — which would have been when details of Swift's and Alwyn's breakup were made public.

The theory seems to be confirmed when Florence sings, "So you pack your life away just to wait out/The sh—storm back in Texas." According to Elle , Houston was the next tour stop after Tampa.

Ever since the track list was revealed, fans looked back at moments from the Tampa shows and noticed the popstar seemed upset when performing songs about her past relationship.

Does Florida get any other Tayor Swift nods in 'The Tortured Poets Department'?

Yes! In "Fortnight," a collaboration with Post Malone and the lead single on the album about a suburban housewife's fling with a married man, she sings at the end:

"'Nother fortnight lost in America; Move to Florida, buy the car you want; But it won't start up 'til you touch, touch, touch me"

Where can I buy 'The Tortured Poets Department'?

You can purchase it  on her website . There are several versions of the album available, including a CD, cassette, vinyl and digital album. 

These retailers are selling the album starting Friday, April 19:

• Barnes and Noble
•   Local record stores