wharf

[ wawrf, hwawrf ]

/ wɔrf, ʰwɔrf /

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See synonyms for: wharf / wharves on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural wharves

[wawrvz, hwawrvz], /wɔrvz, ʰwɔrvz/, wharfs.

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.

Obsolete.

a riverbank.
the shore of the sea.

verb (used with object)

to provide with a wharf or wharves.

to place or store on a wharf: The schedule allowed little time to wharf the cargo.

to accommodate at or bring to a wharf: The new structure will wharf several vessels.

verb (used without object)

to tie up at a wharf; dock: The ship wharfed in the early morning.

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showing self-respect

treating others with kindness

acting selfishly

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Origin of wharf

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

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH wharf

dock, harbor, pier, wharf

Words nearby wharf

whapping, whare, wharenui, wharepuni, whare wananga, wharf, wharfage, wharfie, wharfinger, wharf rat, Wharton

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use wharf in a sentence

With more money, the port could have expanded channels, fortified wharves and improved road and rail links, he said.
Inside America’s Broken Supply Chain|David J. Lynch|September 30, 2021|Washington Post
Chiefs of the Mi’kmaq Grand Council join members of the Sipekne’katik First Nation on the wharf in Saulnierville, Nova Scotia, to bless the fleet before it launches a self-regulated fishery.
The Lobster Attacks Striking at Canada’s Friendly Image|Charu Kasturi|October 29, 2020|Ozy
Then bed down in the seaside town of Mystic, Connecticut, with views of the wharf from your private room at the Steamboat Inn.
The U.S. Road Trips You Should Really Take|Lonely Planet|April 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Sex is no less grotesque; during the act he hears “the wave-against-a-wharf smack of rubber on flesh.”
American Dreams, 1933: Miss Lonelyhearts by Nathanael West|Nathaniel Rich|April 29, 2013|DAILY BEAST

Afterward, stumble out into North Beach and walk it off on a stroll down to the Wharf.
The Easygoing Flair of San Francisco|Jolie Hunt|April 10, 2010|DAILY BEAST
And when I say East London, I mean Shoreditch—those of you expecting sterile Canary Wharf, think again.
Gal With a Suitcase|Jolie Hunt|November 21, 2009|DAILY BEAST
When there was a big concert, the whole wharf and Main Street became transformed.
The Great Summer Read Is Here|Jane Ciabattari|February 19, 2009|DAILY BEAST
She had just left the wharf at Cincinnati for Louisville, with 225 passengers on board, of whom but 124 were saved.
The Every Day Book of History and Chronology|Joel Munsell
Dick was at the wharf, one day last week, when one of the up river boats arrived.
The Book of Anecdotes and Budget of Fun;|Various
Robert uttered a shrill, piercing whistle which might have been heard back at the wharf.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories|Kate Chopin
The lovers, who had laid their plans the night before, were already strolling toward the wharf.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories|Kate Chopin
In both cases the riparian owner, so-called, may erect a wharf extending from his land subject to public control.
Putnam's Handy Law Book for the Layman|Albert Sidney Bolles

British Dictionary definitions for wharf

wharf

/ (wɔːf) /

noun plural wharves (wɔːvz) or wharfs

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

the wharves NZ the working area of a dock

an obsolete word for shore 1

verb (tr)

to moor or dock at a wharf

to provide or equip with a wharf or wharves

to store or unload on a wharf

Word Origin for wharf

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

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

wharf

Origin of wharf

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH wharf

Words nearby wharf

Words related to wharf

How to use wharf in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for wharf

Word Origin for wharf