shipping

1 of 2

noun

ship·​ping ˈshi-piŋ How to pronounce shipping (audio)
Synonyms of shippingnext
1
a
: passage on a ship
b
: ships
c
: the body of ships in one place or belonging to one port or country
2
: the act or business of one that ships

shipping

2 of 2

present participle of ship entry 2, ship entry 3

Examples of shipping in a Sentence

Noun The fruit was ready for shipping. They protected our shipping from submarines during wartime.
Recent Examples on the Web
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Noun
In Yemen, the Houthis recently seized more territory along the Red Sea coast and near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a crucial shipping alternative to the Strait of Hormuz. — Samy Magdy, Los Angeles Times, 19 Oct. 2026 Russia has also intensified attacks on Ukraine's transport infrastructure, including road border crossings, railways and shipping routes, Derkach said. — Elsa Ohlen,lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 19 Oct. 2026 Architects have long toyed with shipping containers as objects of exploration, deploying these off-the-shelf metal structures for a wide variety of uses. — Edward Keegan, Chicago Tribune, 18 Oct. 2026 The rebels recently seized more territory along Yemen’s Red Sea coast and near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a crucial shipping alternative to the Strait of Hormuz. — ABC News, 18 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for shipping

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of shipping was in the 14th century

Phrases Containing shipping

Rhymes for shipping

See All Rhymes for shipping

Browse Nearby Words

shipper fork
shipping
shipping and handling
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Shipping.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shipping. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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Kids Definition

shipping

noun
ship·​ping
ˈship-iŋ
1
: the body of ships in one place or belonging to one port or country
2
: the act or business of one that ships goods

More from Merriam-Webster on shipping

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for shipping

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about shipping

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