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• port
  port

  noun

  a city, town, or other place where ships load or unload.
• Port.
  Port.

  abbreviation

  Portugal.

port

¹ American  

[pawrt, pohrt] / pɔrt, poʊrt /

noun

1. a city, town, or other place where ships load or unload.

2. a place along a coast in which ships may take refuge from storms; harbor.

   Synonyms:

   anchorage

3. Also called port of entry. Law. any place where persons and merchandise are allowed to pass, by water or land, into and out of a country and where customs officers are stationed to inspect or appraise imported goods.

4. a geographical area that forms a harbor.

   the largest port on the eastern seaboard.

5. Informal. an airport.

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port ² American  

[pawrt, pohrt] / pɔrt, poʊrt /

noun

1. the left-hand side of a vessel or aircraft, facing forward.

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adjective

1. pertaining to or designating port.

2. located on the left side of a vessel or aircraft.

verb (used with or without object)

1. to turn or shift to the port, or left, side.

port ³ American  

[pawrt, pohrt] / pɔrt, poʊrt /

noun

1. any of a class of very sweet wines, mostly dark-red, originally from Portugal.

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port ⁴ American  

[pawrt, pohrt] / pɔrt, poʊrt /

noun

1. an opening in the side or other exterior part of a ship for admitting air and light or for taking on cargo.

2. Machinery. an aperture in the surface of a cylinder, for the passage of steam, air, water, etc.

3. a small aperture in an armored vehicle, aircraft, or fortification through which a gun can be fired or a camera directed.

4. Computers.

   1. a physical connection in a computer to which a peripheral device or a transmission line from a remote terminal can be attached.

   2. Also called port number. a numerical code that identifies an origin or destination within an IP address.

      Routers can be configured to change ports within the local network.

5. the raised center portion on a bit for horses.

6. Chiefly Scot. a gate or portal, as to a town or fortress.

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port ⁵ American  

[pawrt] / pɔrt /

verb (used with object)

1. Military. to carry (a rifle or other weapon) with both hands, in a slanting direction across the front of the body, with the barrel or like part near the left shoulder.

2. Computers. to rewrite the source code of (a program) in a different programming language, or modify it to run on a different hardware platform or operating system (sometimes followed byover ).

   The publisher is porting several classic games to next-generation consoles.

   Our test suite may be useful if you are modifying the compiler, or porting it to a new system.

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noun

1. Military. the position of a rifle or other weapon when ported.

2. Digital Technology, Computers. a version of an existing program, such as a video game, written to run on a different platform or operating system.

3. Archaic. manner of bearing oneself; carriage or deportment.

Port. ⁶ American  

abbreviation

1. Portugal.

2. Portuguese.

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port ¹ British  

/ pɔːt /

verb

1. (tr) to carry (a rifle, etc) in a position diagonally across the body with the muzzle near the left shoulder

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noun

1. this position

port ² British  

/ pɔːt /

verb

1. (tr) computing to change (programs) from one system to another

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port ³ British  

/ pɔːt /

noun

1. Also called (formerly): larboard.

   1. the left side of an aircraft or vessel when facing the nose or bow

   2. ( as modifier ) Compare starboard

      the port bow

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verb

1. to turn or be turned towards the port

port ⁴ British  

/ pɔːt /

noun

1. (esp in Queensland) a suitcase or school case

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port ⁵ British  

/ pɔːt /

noun

1. a sweet fortified dessert wine

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Port. ⁶ British  

abbreviation

1. Portugal

2. Portuguese

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port ⁷ British  

/ pɔːt /

noun

1. a town or place alongside navigable water with facilities for the loading and unloading of ships

2. See port of entry

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port ⁸ British  

/ pɔːt /

noun

1. nautical

   1. an opening in the side of a ship, fitted with a watertight door, for access to the holds

   2. See porthole

2. a small opening in a wall, armoured vehicle, etc, for firing through

3. an aperture, esp one controlled by a valve, by which fluid enters or leaves the cylinder head of an engine, compressor, etc

4. electronics a logic circuit for the input and ouput of data

5. a gate or portal in a town or fortress

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port Scientific  

/ pôrt /

1. An opening, as in a cylinder or valve face, for the passage of steam or fluid.

2. A place where data can pass into or out of a central processing unit, computer, or peripheral. With central processing units, a port is a fixed set of connections for incoming and outgoing data or instructions. With computers and peripherals, a port is generally a socket into which a connector can be plugged.

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port Idioms  

1. see any port in a storm.

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Synonym Usage

See harbor.

Other Word Forms

• portless
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of port¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English, from Latin portus “harbor, haven”; akin to ford

Origin of port²

First recorded in 1570–80; special use of port ⁴

Origin of port³

First recorded in 1695–95; earlier Oporto, from Portuguese O Porto, Oporto “the port” (that is, the main port of shipment for the wines of Portugal); see also Oporto l

Origin of port⁴

First recorded before 950; Middle English, Old English, from Latin porta “gate”; akin to portus “harbor”; see port ¹

Origin of port⁵

First recorded in 1560–70; from French porter, from Latin portāre “to carry”; see fare

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Explanation

A port is a place where boats come and go. If you think that docks and harbors are romantic, I suggest you move to a port city like Baltimore. Just as seaports and airports link countries together by enabling trade and travel, a device that links computers together is also called a port. Port comes from the Latin word portus, meaning "haven" or "harbor." You can hear this sense of a port as a place of safe arrival in the proverb "any port in a storm." On a ship, the port side is the left side. Port is also a verb, meaning "to carry."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

port Port.

Plus, port employers near deal to delay strike threat, and surging chip demand drives up prices.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 1, 2026

It also would broaden public insight into how lease agreements with the port affect the local workforce by adding employment reporting requirements for any leaseholder extending a lease or any lease applicant.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 31, 2026

Voters in the city of Los Angeles will consider eight ballot measures covering everything from taxes and fire resources to governance of airports and the port and the quality of parks.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 31, 2026

Carriers involved in the conflict have operated around the clock for months at a time with little rest, setting modern-day records for their length of deployment and consecutive days at sea without a port call.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026

These included the Boston Port Act, which shut down the city’s port after the 1773 Boston Tea Party, and the Quartering Act, which required Americans to allow British soldiers to take over their buildings.

From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis

"We currently have no definitive information that a crime took place here in North Port. With that said, the circumstances are odd," the North Port Police Department said Tuesday.

From Fox News ● Sep. 13, 2021

It is the Port. feitiço, Lat. factitius, artificial, applied by the Portuguese explorers to the graven images of the heathen.

From The Romance of Words (4th ed.) by Ernest Weekley

Maria Isle. returns to Western Port. sees a snake. autograph. superseded by George Curtoys.

From The Logbooks of the Lady Nelson With the journal of her first commander Lieutenant James Grant by Ida Lee

Gr. ταρκάσιον, a quiver, for which the Fr. is carquois, and Port. carcaz.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 3 "Capefigue" to "Carneades" by Various

Ayah, an Indian nurse, is Port. aia, nurse, of unknown origin.

From The Romance of Words (4th ed.) by Ernest Weekley

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Related Words

• harbor
• seaport
• wharf

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