mooring

American  

[moor-ing] / ˈmʊər ɪŋ /

noun

1. the act of a person or thing that moors.

2. Usually moorings. the means by which a ship, boat, or aircraft is moored.

3. moorings, a place where a ship, boat, or aircraft may be moored.

4. Usually moorings. one's stability or security.

   After the death of his wife he lost his moorings.

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mooring British  

/ ˈmʊərɪŋ, ˈmɔː- /

noun

1. a place for mooring a vessel

2. a permanent anchor, dropped in the water and equipped with a floating buoy, to which vessels can moor

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Etymology

Origin of mooring

1375–1425; late Middle English; compare Middle Dutch moor; see moor ², -ing ¹

Explanation

A mooring is kind of like a parking lot for boats — it's a place people can keep their dinghies, sailboats, or ships tied up. One complication of owning a boat is that you need to rent a mooring for it, a place to keep it while you're not out on the water. Piers, docks, and wharfs all typically provide moorings for boats and ships, where they can be attached securely with ropes. Mooring comes from the verb moor, "to fasten by cable," from a Germanic root.

Example Sentences

Asked about the 5.5 million barrels of fuel that, according to Kpler data, arrived from Russia at the company’s mooring in the bay of Mersin this year, Ayrik said he couldn’t discuss the company’s customers.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 27, 2025

A major Russian oil terminal near the southern port of Novorossiysk halted operations early Saturday after a naval drone attack damaged one of its three mooring points.

From Barron's • Nov. 29, 2025

Mr Bane said he had woken up when he heard the anchor alarm - which rings if the boat is straying from its mooring - and realised that Sarm was no longer on the yacht.

From BBC • Sep. 13, 2025

The mooring lines tethered to the ocean floor are made of rope nearly thick as a telephone pole and under heavy tension.

From Seattle Times • May 14, 2024

Then there was, that night, the storm, and ships which had cut their anchor cables to escape the assaults of rebellion were now incapable of mooring, and so were dragged ineluctably toward shore.

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson