shipping

¹ American  

[ship-ing] / ˈʃɪp ɪŋ /

noun

1. the act or business of a person or thing that ships.

2. a number of ships, especially merchant ships, taken as a whole; tonnage.

3. Obsolete. a voyage.

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shipping ² American  

[ship-ing] / ˈʃɪp ɪŋ /

noun

Slang.

1. the act or practice of discussing, writing about, or hoping for a romantic relationship between fictional characters, as in fan fiction, or between famous people, whether or not the romance actually exists in the book, show, etc., or in real life.

   the shipping of TV characters;

   shipping in webcomics.

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shipping British  

/ ˈʃɪpɪŋ /

noun

1. 1. the business of transporting freight, esp by ship

   2. ( as modifier )

      a shipping magnate

      shipping line

2. 1. ships collectively

      there is a lot of shipping in the Channel

   2. the tonnage of a number of ships

      shipping for this year exceeded that of last

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Usage

What else does shipping mean? Shipping is the act of wanting two or more fictional characters or celebrities to end up in a relationship, usually romantic.

Other Word Forms

• nonshipping
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of shipping¹

Middle English word dating back to 1250–1300; see origin at ship ¹, -ing ¹

Origin of shipping²

First recorded in 1990–95; (relation)ship + -ing ¹

Example Sentences

Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz rose to its busiest in two months after a deal to halt the US-Iran war, maritime trackers said on Friday.

From Barron's • Jun. 19, 2026

Shipping and inventory expenses fell to 7.8% of GDP in 2025, though executives say complexity continues.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 17, 2026

Shipping traffic should return to pre-war levels "over the next couple of weeks" but there had already been a "substantial increase in traffic," the first US official said.

From Barron's • Jun. 15, 2026

Shipping companies, which are facing huge losses, are hoping they may be able to cut staffing costs.

From BBC • Jun. 2, 2026

I suppose he saw me glancing about the room in search of some tokens of Shipping, or capital, for he added, “In the City.”

From "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens

Related Words

• freight
• ship