quay

[kee, key, kwey]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR quay ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a landing place, especially one of solid masonry, constructed along the edge of a body of water; wharf.

Nearby words

Origin of quay

1690–1700; spelling variant (after French quai) of earlier kay (also key, whence the modern pronunciation) < Old French kay, cay; akin to Spanish cayo shoal. See key²

SYNONYMS FOR quay

pier, dock, landing, levee.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR quay ON THESAURUS.COM

Related formsquay·like, adjective

Can be confusedcay key quay

Quay

[kwey]

noun

Matthew Stanley,1833–1904, U.S. politician: senator 1887–99, 1901–4.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for quay

On my last day but one I crossed to the Giudecca and ran into him on the quay.
My Biennale Favorites|Anthony Haden-Guest|June 8, 2009|DAILY BEAST
Every quay, hill-top, and house-roof whence a view of the course could be obtained was crowded.
Cornish Characters|S. Baring-Gould
Languid under its trappings, lightly rocked by the eddy, a slow bark drew near and anchored at the quay.
Very Woman|Remy de Gourmont
The quay was lined with relations, and friends, and idle persons.
The Marriage Contract|Honore de Balzac

Before turning to go along the quay he paused, hesitating for a moment what he would do.
Lord Tony's Wife|Baroness Emmuska Orczy
He gave the name of a café between the cathedral and the quay.
The Summons|A.E.W. Mason

British Dictionary definitions for quay

quay

noun

a wharf, typically one built parallel to the shorelineCompare pier (def. 1)

Word Origin for quay

C14 keye, from Old French kai, of Celtic origin; compare Cornish kē hedge, fence, Old Breton cai fence

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for quay

quay

1690s, variant of Middle English key, keye, caye "wharf" (c.1300; mid-13c. in place names), from Old North French cai (Old French chai, 12c., Modern French quai) "sand bank," from Gaulish caium (5c.), from Old Celtic *kagio- "to encompass, enclose" (cf. Welsh cae "fence, hedge," Cornish ke "hedge"), from PIE *kagh- "to catch, seize; wickerwork, fence" (see hedge (n.)). Spelling altered in English by influence of French quai.