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Synonyms

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.

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.
shipping British  
/ ˈʃɪpɪŋ /

noun

    1. the business of transporting freight, esp by ship

    2. ( as modifier )

      a shipping magnate

      shipping line

    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
"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

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

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

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“If someone asks you to ship something, you’re still going to do it, you’re just going to quote them a higher price,” said Mike Jacob, president of the Pacific Merchant Shipping Assn.

From Los Angeles Times • May 8, 2026

Shipping experts said that Project Freedom, which was announced on Sunday, had a limited impact in its opening hours, with only a handful of ships passing through the strait.

From BBC • May 6, 2026

A third ship, the Francesca, a boxship owned by Geneva-based Mediterranean Shipping, came under attack while waiting to cross into the Gulf of Oman, one of the people familiar with the matter said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 23, 2026

Shipping industry intelligence site Lloyd's List reported that more than 20 Iranian so-called "shadow vessels", had transited past the US blockade.

From Barron's • Apr. 21, 2026

Oika Shipping Company claims all cargo absolutely licit and not aware of any officer or crew problems.

From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.