warehouse

[wair-hous, wair-houz, -hous]

noun

plural

warehouses 

1. a building, or a part of one, for the storage of goods, merchandise, etc.

2. British.,  a large retail store.

3. a building, or a part of one, in which wholesalers keep large stocks of merchandise, which they display and sell to retailers.

verb (used with object)

warehoused, warehousing 

1. to place, deposit, or store in a warehouse.

2. to set aside or accumulate, as for future use.

3. to place in a government or bonded warehouse, to be kept until duties are paid.

4. Informal.,  to confine (the mentally ill) to large institutions for long-term custodial care.

warehouse

noun

1. a place where goods are stored prior to their use, distribution, or sale

2. See bonded warehouse

3. a large commercial, esp wholesale, establishment

verb

1. (tr) to store or place in a warehouse, esp a bonded warehouse

Other Word Forms

• miniwarehouse noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of warehouse¹

Middle English word dating back to 1300–50; ware ¹, house

Example Sentences

In Hangzhou, once the capital of Song China, Marco Polo observed markets linked by canals and warehouses that “supply them with every article that could be desired.”

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He knew the importance of technology after more than five years helping build out Amazon.com’s ground and air logistics network linking warehouses and distribution centers.

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In the third quarter, the amount of warehouse space completed was down 14.6% from the previous three months at 63.6 million square feet, which is nearly 33% lower than a year earlier.

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Those employees work in roles including store development, roasting, manufacturing, warehousing and distribution.

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Inventory sitting in warehouses ties up capital and if demand doesn’t shape up as planned, having to discount hurts margins, he said.

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