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

Oil prices extended falls on signs that shipping activity through the Strait of Hormuz is gradually resuming, with international authorities reporting improved safety conditions.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 24, 2026

“There’s an extreme amount of uncertainty and, you know, things can change on a dime,” said Lee Klaskow, a senior transportation, logistics and shipping Analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 23, 2026

“Meanwhile, shipping data showed millions of barrels of crude and fuel products transited the Strait of Hormuz over the weekend,” they added.

From Barron's • Jun. 23, 2026

To facilitate the sales, the U.S. will wave sanctions on those exports and related services, such as shipping and insurance, providing an economic boost for Iran.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 23, 2026

Captain Billy’s son Otis emerged from the unpainted crab shipping shed.

From "Jacob Have I Loved" by Katherine Paterson

Related Words

• freight
• ship