wharf

[hwawrf, wawrf]

noun

plural

wharves, wharfs 

1. a structure built on the shore of or projecting into a harbor, stream, etc., so that vessels may be moored alongside to load or unload or to lie at rest; quay; pier.

2. Obsolete.

   1. a riverbank.

   2. the shore of the sea.

verb (used with object)

1. to provide with a wharf or wharves.

2. to place or store on a wharf.

   The schedule allowed little time to wharf the cargo.

3. to accommodate at or bring to a wharf.

   The new structure will wharf several vessels.

verb (used without object)

1. to tie up at a wharf; dock.

   The ship wharfed in the early morning.

wharf

/ wɔːf /

noun

1. a platform of timber, stone, concrete, etc, built parallel to the waterfront at a harbour or navigable river for the docking, loading, and unloading of ships

2. the working area of a dock

3. an obsolete word for shore 1

verb

1. to moor or dock at a wharf

2. to provide or equip with a wharf or wharves

3. to store or unload on a wharf

Word History and Origins

Origin of wharf¹

before 1050; Middle English (noun); Old English hwearf embankment; cognate with Middle Low German warf; akin to German Werf pier

Word History and Origins

Origin of wharf¹

Old English hwearf heap; related to Old Saxon hwarf, Old High German hwarb a turn, Old Norse hvarf circle

Example Sentences

Boats can dock at wharfs, quays and piers protected by the reef's natural lagoon.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

When firefighters arrived, they found the damaged section about two-thirds away from the start of the wharf.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The port, with the help of federal and provincial funds, is spending 609 million Canadian dollars dredging the river and building new wharves.

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Mikkelsen said the port is planning upgrades to wharfs and access roads, improved on-site utilities, and dredging and environmental restoration, among other efforts to accommodate the wind equipment.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Along a rocky wharf at the Port of Los Angeles on Tuesday, seven blue steel structures bobbed in the gentle wake of a Catalina Island ferry.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• berth 
• dock 
• jetty 
• levee 
• pier