berth

American  

[burth] / bɜrθ /

noun

• berths
  plural

1. a shelflike sleeping space, as on a ship, airplane, or railroad car.

2. Nautical.

   1. the space allotted to a vessel at anchor or at a wharf.

   2. the distance maintained between a vessel and the shore, another vessel, or any object.

   3. the position or rank of a ship's officer.

   4. the cabin of a ship's officer.

3. a job; position.

4. a place, listing, or role.

   She clinched a berth on our tennis team.

   Synonyms:

   appointment, niche, post, position, slot, spot

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verb (used with object)

• berths,
  present (3rd person singular)
• berthed,
  past participle,  past
• berthing
  present participle

1. Nautical.

   1. to allot to (a vessel) a certain space at which to anchor or tie up.

   2. to bring to or install in a berth, anchorage, or moorage.

      The captain had to berth the ship without the aid of tugboats.

2. to provide with a sleeping space, as on a train.

verb (used without object)

• berths,
  present (3rd person singular)
• berthed,
  past participle,  past
• berthing
  present participle

1. Nautical. to come to a dock, anchorage, or moorage.

idioms

1. give a wide berth to, to shun; remain discreetly away from.

   Since his riding accident, he has given a wide berth to skittish horses.

berth British  

/ bɜːθ /

noun

1. a bed or bunk in a vessel or train, usually narrow and fixed to a wall

2. nautical a place assigned to a ship at a mooring

3. nautical sufficient distance from the shore or from other ships or objects for a ship to manoeuvre

4. to keep clear of; avoid

5. nautical accommodation on a ship

6. informal a job, esp as a member of a ship's crew

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verb

1. (tr) nautical to assign a berth to (a vessel)

2. nautical to dock (a vessel)

3. (tr) to provide with a sleeping place, as on a vessel or train

4. (intr) nautical to pick up a mooring in an anchorage

berth More Idioms  

1. see give a wide berth to.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• unberth
  verb (used with object)

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• berths
  plural

Participles

• berthing
  present
• berthed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• berth
  simple
• berths
  simple
• have berthed
  perfect
• has berthed
  perfect
• am berthing
  progressive
• are berthing
  progressive
• is berthing
  progressive
• have been berthing
  perfect progressive
• has been berthing
  perfect progressive

Past

• berthed
  simple
• had berthed
  perfect
• was berthing
  progressive
• were berthing
  progressive
• had been berthing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will berth
  simple
• will have berthed
  perfect
• will be berthing
  progressive
• will have been berthing
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of berth

First recorded in 1615–25; probably equivalent to bear ¹ + -th ¹

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Explanation

A berth is a bed, usually stacked like bunk beds, on a train or a ship. If you're on an overnight train, you may want to spring for a berth instead of sitting up all night. You may have heard the phrase "to give someone a wide berth" — that means to give them plenty of space. But if you want to use berth as a verb, you better be talking about parking a boat: to berth means to moor or dock a ship. The parking spot itself also happens to be called a berth. So if there's a big storm brewing, you best be sure to berth your boat securely in its berth.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

berth berths berthed berthing

And McDermott is keen for his side to stick to the blueprint that helped them thrash France 82-0 last weekend to keep slim prospects of a semi-final berth within their sights.

From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026

If the Bruins win out, Chesney will have directed an underdog to a surprise CFP berth for the second consecutive season.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 25, 2026

This is their eighth playoff berth in the past nine years, a remarkable achievement considering all of their disadvantages.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026

But Ramsdale quickly fell behind Raya in the pecking order in 2023-24 and lost his starting berth after just four league games.

From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2026

I had a wide berth to explore myself.

From "Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood" by Trevor Noah

Hundreds of metres of berths sat empty and towering gantry cranes stood idle as a skeleton crew conducted maintenance.

From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026

Loading berths at the Fujairah tanker terminal were suspended, the port and marine management company Inchcape Shipping Services said in a note early Tuesday.

From Barron's ● Mar. 17, 2026

That in itself is not an unusual number, as ships routinely wait their turn to load or unload at port berths in the region.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 6, 2026

Over six seasons, he led the team to three playoff berths and was once named coach of the year.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 2, 2026

The great ships of Boston which had been bringing wealth for over a hundred years were idle at their berths.

From "Johnny Tremain" by Esther Hoskins Forbes

While rain battered Manhattan during Memorial Day weekend, more than 1,400 people packed into the hangar deck of the USS Intrepid, a World War II aircraft carrier permanently berthed at Midtown Manhattan’s Pier 86.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 15, 2026

Each “Book” occupies one side of a long bilateral vitrine, which commands the narrow gallery like a berthed aircraft carrier.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 30, 2026

The ship Mississippi was berthed at Terminal G when the containers mysteriously fell into the water.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2025

But just around the corner, berthed where no-one can take pictures, is a group of military vessels.

From BBC ● Aug. 31, 2025

"The great cog Saduleon is berthed at the end of the quay, and the galleys Summer Sun and Joso’s Prank are anchored beyond the breakwater."

From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin

Other rising costs faced by the lobster industry include berthing, insurance and maintenance.

From Barron's ● Oct. 24, 2026

The port closed terminal five on Friday after severe weather conditions caused a "berthing incident".

From BBC ● Dec. 9, 2025

While electrification at the berthing docks is already underway in Seattle, grant programs in the legislation will support further electrification and the transition from diesel-powered machinery, not just in Washington but around the country.

From Seattle Times ● Aug. 14, 2023

CalMac plans to initially conduct sea and berthing trials before deploying MV Alfred on its routes, so no bookings or services have been affected.

From BBC ● Apr. 15, 2023

The berthing made to fit into a vessel's gangway on either side.

From The Sailor's Word-Book An Alphabetical Digest of Nautical Terms, including Some More Especially Military and Scientific, but Useful to Seamen; as well as Archaisms of Early Voyagers, etc. by Sir Edward Belcher

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Related Words

• dock
• port
• wharf

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