Wharfage
noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 A dock, quay, or pier. countable, uncountable
- 2 a platform built out from the shore into the water and supported by piles; provides access to ships and boats wordnet
- 3 Wharfs collectively. countable, uncountable
"It is pleasant to swim well out into the stream of the river, and, with one’s chin on a level with the wide stretch of water, take in a “trout’s-eye view” of the little town, ascending in tiers of wharfage, trees, grey ramparts, more trees, and clustered roofs, with the old cathedral of the Trinity poised guardian-like above the crumbling walls of the Kremlin."
- 4 a fee charged for the use of a wharf or quay wordnet
- 5 A fee charged for using a wharf. countable, uncountable
"If the owner of goods deposited at a wharf sells them, and gives notice to the wharfinger of such sale, on tendering the wharfage then due, he is discharged from liability for future wharfage."
Example
More examples"It is pleasant to swim well out into the stream of the river, and, with one’s chin on a level with the wide stretch of water, take in a “trout’s-eye view” of the little town, ascending in tiers of wharfage, trees, grey ramparts, more trees, and clustered roofs, with the old cathedral of the Trinity poised guardian-like above the crumbling walls of the Kremlin."
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Germanic *hwerbaną Proto-West Germanic *hwerban Old English hweorfan Middle English wharf Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-tós Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂tos Proto-Italic *-ātos Latin -ātus Proto-Indo-European *-kos Proto-Italic *-kos Latin -cus Latin -icus Latin -āticus Latin -āticum Old French -agebor. Middle English -age Middle English wharfage English wharfage From Middle English wharfage; equivalent to wharf + -age.
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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.