tonnage
Americannoun
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the capacity of a merchant vessel, expressed either in units of weight, as deadweight tons, or of volume, as gross tons.
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ships collectively considered with reference to their carrying capacity or together with their cargoes.
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a duty on ships or boats at so much per ton of cargo or freight, or according to the capacity in tons.
noun
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the capacity of a merchant ship expressed in tons, for which purpose a ton is considered as 40 cubic feet of freight or 100 cubic feet of bulk cargo, unless such an amount would weigh more than 2000 pounds in which case the actual weight is used
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the weight of the cargo of a merchant ship
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the total amount of shipping of a port or nation, estimated by the capacity of its ships
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a duty on ships based either on their capacity or their register tonnage
Etymology
Origin of tonnage
1375–1425; late Middle English: duty < Old French. See ton 1, -age
Explanation
Tonnage is a type of tax. Tonnage is charged to the owners of ships that enter the United States, and the charge depends on how much their freight weighs. See the word ton in tonnage? That’s a clue this word is related to weight. In fact, it has to do with how much cargo weight is on a ship that's entering the U.S. The greater the weight, the greater the tonnage, which is a tax the ship’s owners must pay. Companies that ship a lot of heavy, bulky goods to the U.S. have to pay a lot of tonnage.
Vocabulary lists containing tonnage
The Constitution of the United States
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"A Sound of Thunder" by Ray Bradbury
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Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Suffixes: -age
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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.
That led to 20 percent fewer vessels and a 17 percent drop in tonnage, not to mention longer lines of ships queuing up.
From Barron's ● Sep. 3, 2026
“And I think perhaps describing it in terms of tonnage to orbit is a good way to appreciate the magnitude of the impact Starship will have on the future of civilization.”
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026
Over this period, the Indian navy more than doubled its tonnage, but China’s naval tonnage more than quadrupled.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 25, 2026
Given the sheer tonnage of Russian machinery still at the launchpad, it appears there is an enormous job ahead.
From Barron's ● Feb. 18, 2026
Shawn was the only person I had ever seen stand up to Dad, the only one whose force of mind, whose sheer tonnage of conviction, could make Dad give way.
From "Educated" by Tara Westover
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.
