dock

¹ American  

[dok] / dɒk /

noun

1. a landing pier.

2. the space or waterway between two piers or wharves, as for receiving a ship while in port.

3. such a waterway, enclosed or open, together with the surrounding piers, wharves, etc.

4. dry dock.

5. a platform for loading and unloading trucks, railway freight cars, etc.

6. an airplane hangar or repair shed.

7. Also called scene dock.  a place in a theater near the stage or beneath the floor of the stage for the storage of scenery.

---

verb (used with object)

1. to bring (a ship or boat) into a dock; lay up in a dock.

2. to place in dry dock, as for repairs, cleaning, or painting.

3. to join (a space vehicle) with another or with a space station in outer space.

verb (used without object)

1. to come or go into a dock or dry dock.

2. (of two space vehicles) to join together in outer space.

dock ² American  

[dok] / dɒk /

noun

1. the solid or fleshy part of an animal's tail, as distinguished from the hair.

2. the part of a tail left after cutting or clipping.

---

verb (used with object)

1. to cut off the end of; cut short.

   to dock a tail.

2. to cut short the tail of.

   to dock a horse.

3. to deduct from the wages of, usually as a punishment.

   The boss docked him a day's pay.

4. to deduct from (wages).

   The boss docked his paycheck $20.

dock ³ American  

[dok] / dɒk /

noun

1. the place in a courtroom where a prisoner is placed during trial.

---

idioms

1. in the dock, being tried in a court, especially a criminal court; on trial.

dock ⁴ American  

[dok] / dɒk /

noun

1. any of various weedy plants belonging to the genus Rumex, of the buckwheat family, as R. obtusifolius bitter dock or R. acetosa sour dock, having long taproots.

2. any of various other plants, mostly coarse weeds.

---

dock ¹ British  

/ dɒk /

noun

1. a wharf or pier

2. a space between two wharves or piers for the mooring of ships

3. an area of water that can accommodate a ship and can be closed off to allow regulation of the water level

4. short for dry dock

5. short for scene dock

6. a platform from which lorries, goods trains, etc, are loaded and unloaded

---

verb

1. to moor (a vessel) at a dock or (of a vessel) to be moored at a dock

2. to put (a vessel) into a dry dock for repairs or (of a vessel) to come into a dry dock

3. (of two spacecraft) to link together in space or link together (two spacecraft) in space

dock ² British  

/ dɒk /

noun

1. the bony part of the tail of an animal, esp a dog or sheep

2. the part of an animal's tail left after the major part of it has been cut off

---

verb

1. to remove (the tail or part of the tail) of (an animal) by cutting through the bone

   to dock a tail

   to dock a horse

2. to deduct (an amount) from (a person's wages, pension, etc)

   they docked a third of his wages

dock ³ British  

/ dɒk /

noun

1. any of various temperate weedy plants of the polygonaceous genus Rumex, having greenish or reddish flowers and typically broad leaves

2. any of several similar or related plants

---

dock ⁴ British  

/ dɒk /

noun

1. an enclosed space in a court of law where the accused sits or stands during his trial

---

dock More Idioms  

1. see in the dock.

---

Etymology

Origin of dock¹

First recorded in 1505–15; from Middle Dutch doc(ke)

Origin of dock²

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English dok, Old English -docca, in fingirdoccana (genitive plural) “finger muscles”; cognate with Frisian dok, Low German docke “bundle,” Icelandic dokkur “stumpy tail,” Middle High German tocke “bundle, sheaf”

Origin of dock³

First recorded in 1580–90; perhaps from Dutch dok (dialectal sense) “cage, poultry pen, rabbit hutch”

Origin of dock⁴

First recorded before 1000; Middle English dokke, Old English docce; cognate with Middle Dutch docke, Middle High German tocke

Explanation

A dock is a structure that's made for bringing boats or ships in to the shore and loading or unloading them of goods or passengers. The small dock behind your lake house might be mainly used for launching your canoe. Smaller docks are wooden planks that jut into the water — boats can pull up and be tied or anchored there. Larger docks in harbors might have gates enclosing areas of water where ships can be repaired or cargo unloaded. When boats dock, they pull up to a dock or a pier. You can also use the verb form of dock to mean "cut off," as when a farmer docks an animal's tail or a boss docks a worker's wages.

Example Sentences

John P. Murtha, a 680-foot-long, 25,000-ton Navy transport dock warship, for an immediate medical evaluation.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 10, 2026

The three suspects in the dock were dressed in grey tracksuits and spoke only to confirm their names and addresses.

From BBC • Apr. 4, 2026

The announcement from Havana comes after the U.S. this week permitted an oil tanker from Russia carrying 700,000 barrels to dock in the Cuban capital.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026

"Think of two ferries of different sizes approaching a dock," says Morrell.

From Science Daily • Mar. 22, 2026

Ella pressed her face to the window, watching as Reagan chased the car until Papa turned toward the dock.

From "The Marvellers" by Dhonielle Clayton

Related Words

• anchor
• berth
• hook up
• moor
• rendezvous
• tie up