commuter
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commuter
A person who regularly travels back and forth between their place of residence and their place of work or training.
Als Pendler verbringt er jeden Tag fast zwei Stunden im Zug.
As a commuter, he spends almost two hours on the train every day.
'Der Pendler' (the commuter) is derived from the verb 'pendeln' (to commute). This describes a regular back-and-forth movement, like the pendulum of a clock. So a 'Pendler' (commuter) regularly moves back and forth between two places.
Viele Menschen pendeln täglich zur Arbeit in die nächste Großstadt.
Many people commute daily to work in the nearest big city.
To describe a commuter's route, the preposition 'zwischen' (between) is often used with two places. The structure is then: 'Pendler zwischen [place A] und [place B]' (commuter between [place A] and [place B]).
Sie ist Pendlerin zwischen Köln und Düsseldorf.
She is a commuter between Cologne and Düsseldorf.
The word is often used in the context of traffic and time. Typical expressions are 'als Pendler unterwegs sein' (to be on the road as a commuter) or 'im Pendlerverkehr im Stau stehen' (to be stuck in commuter traffic).
Für viele Pendler beginnt der Tag sehr früh am Bahnhof.
For many commuters, the day starts very early at the train station.
passenger
'der Passagier' and 'der Pendler' can both be people in a means of transportation, but the focus is different. A passenger is currently riding or traveling along, for example on an airplane, train, or bus. A commuter regularly travels back and forth between their home and their place of work or training. So a commuter can be a passenger during the trip, but not every passenger is a commuter. The words can be confused when talking about train or bus journeys. If regular travel to work is important, you say 'Pendler'.
Viele Pendler fahren jeden Morgen mit der Bahn in die Stadt.
Many commuters take the train into the city every morning.
Ein Passagier stieg in den falschen Zug ein.
A passenger got on the wrong train.