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• ship
  ship

  noun

  a vessel, especially a large oceangoing one propelled by sails or engines.
• -ship
  -ship

  a native English suffix of nouns denoting condition, character, office, skill, etc..

ship

¹ American  

[ship] / ʃɪp /

noun

1. a vessel, especially a large oceangoing one propelled by sails or engines.

2. Nautical.

   1. a sailing vessel square-rigged on all of three or more masts, having jibs, staysails, and a spanker on the aftermost mast.

   2. Now Rare. a bark having more than three masts.

3. the crew and, sometimes, the passengers of a vessel.

   The captain gave shore leave to the whole ship.

4. an airship, airplane, or spacecraft.

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verb (used with object)

shipped, shipping

1. to put or take on board a ship or other means of transportation; to send or transport by ship, rail, truck, plane, etc.

2. Nautical. to take in (water) over the side, as a vessel does when waves break over it.

3. to bring (an object) into a ship or boat.

4. to engage (someone) for service on a ship.

5. to fix in a ship or boat in the proper place for use.

6. to place (an oar) in proper position for rowing.

7. to send away.

   They shipped the kids off to camp for the summer.

verb (used without object)

shipped, shipping

1. to go on board or travel by ship; embark.

2. to engage to serve on a ship.

3. 1. to be sent or transported by ship, rail, truck, plane, etc..

      Both packages shipped this morning.

   2. to permit of being transported by any of these means.

      Fresh raspberries do not ship well.

verb phrase

1. ship out

   1. to leave, especially for another country or assignment.

      He said goodbye to his family and shipped out for the West Indies.

   2. to send away, especially to another country or assignment.

   3. Informal. to quit, resign, or be fired from a job.

      Shape up or ship out!

idioms

1. jump ship,

   1. to escape from a ship, especially one in foreign waters or a foreign port, as to avoid further service as a sailor or to request political asylum.

   2. to withdraw support or membership from a group, organization, cause, etc.; defect or desert.

      Some of the more liberal members have jumped ship.

2. when one's ship comes in / home, when one's fortune is assured.

   She'll buy a house when her ship comes in.

3. run a tight ship, to exercise a close, strict control over a ship's crew, a company, an organization, or the like.

ship ² American  

[ship] / ʃɪp /

noun

1. 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 TV show's most popular ships.

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verb (used with or without object)

shipped, shipping

1. to take an interest in or hope for a romantic relationship between (fictional characters or famous people), whether or not the romance actually exists.

   I'm shipping those guys—they would make a great couple!

-ship ³ American  

1. a native English suffix of nouns denoting condition, character, office, skill, etc..

   clerkship; friendship; statesmanship.

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ship ¹ British  

/ ʃɪp /

noun

1. a vessel propelled by engines or sails for navigating on the water, esp a large vessel that cannot be carried aboard another, as distinguished from a boat

2. nautical a large sailing vessel with three or more square-rigged masts

3. the crew of a ship

4. short for airship spaceship

5. informal any vehicle or conveyance

6. when one has become successful or wealthy

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verb

1. to place, transport, or travel on any conveyance, esp aboard a ship

   ship the microscopes by aeroplane

   can we ship tomorrow?

2. (tr) nautical to take (water) over the side

3. to bring or go aboard a vessel

   to ship oars

4. informal to send away, often in order to be rid of

   they shipped the children off to boarding school

5. (intr) to engage to serve aboard a ship

   I shipped aboard a Liverpool liner

6. informal (tr) to concede (a goal)

   Celtic have shipped eight goals in three away matches

-ship ² British  

suffix

1. indicating state or condition

   fellowship

2. indicating rank, office, or position

   lordship

3. indicating craft or skill

   horsemanship

   workmanship

   scholarship

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ship More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing ship

• desert a sinking ship
• enough to sink a ship
• shape up (or ship out)
• tight ship
• when one's ship comes in

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Usage

What does -ship mean? The suffix -ship is used to form nouns to indicate a "state of being" or "skill." It is often used in everyday and technical terms. The suffix -ship comes from Old English -scipe, meaning “shape.” Yes, shape. Discover why at our entry for shape. The Latin-derived equivalent of -scipe is -form, from Latin -fōrmis, meaning “having the shape of.” This suffix appears in words such as fungiform and oviform. To learn more, check out our Words That Use article on -form.

Other Word Forms

• misship
  verb
• preship
  verb (used with object)
• shipless
  adjective
• shiplessly
  adverb
• shippable
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of ship¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English noun scip, scipp; cognate with Dutch schip, German Schiff, Old Norse, Gothic skip; verb derivative of the noun

Origin of ship²

First recorded in 1995–2000; shortening of relationship

Origin of -ship³

Middle English, Old English -scipe; akin to shape; cognate with dialectal Frisian, dialectal Dutch schip

Explanation

A ship is a large sea-going vessel, and it's also a way to transport goods. You can ship things on a ship — but, confusingly, you can also ship them on a truck or a train. A ship is like a boat, only larger — some definitions of a sailing ship say it has at least three masts. A cruise ship transports a large number of people in what is basically a floating hotel. A cargo ship, on the other hand, transports goods being imported and exported between countries. One guess about the origin of ship links it to a Germanic word meaning "hollowed-out tree."

Example Sentences

The cruise ship's operator, Oceanwide Expeditions, said the third evacuee, a German passenger, was "closely associated" with a German woman who died on board the ship on 2 May.

From BBC • May 6, 2026

Hantavirus is an unlikely source of contagion on a cruise ship.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 6, 2026

A Dutch cruise ship hit with a hantavirus outbreak has left Cape Verde, after three people on board were medically evacuated.

From BBC • May 6, 2026

Yet the ship’s passengers are at risk, as well as perhaps people they came into close and extended contact with after leaving the ship.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 6, 2026

On October 11, the American ship carrying Dr. Kane and his crew entered New York Harbor.

From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock

Related Words

• dispatch
• export
• haul
• move
• shift
• smuggle
• transfer
• transmit