vessel
VESS-uhl
/ˈvɛs.əl/
A ship or large boat designed for navigation on water.
A formal, overarching term used in maritime law and navigation for any sea-going craft larger than a basic rowboat.
The story behind the word. The term traces back to Latin 'vascellum', meaning a small container or vase. As Anglo-Norman French adapted it to 'vaissel', its meaning widened from a container that holds liquid to a hollow structure that floats on water and holds passengers or cargo.
Word relationships
- ship: 'Ship' is the standard general term, whereas 'vessel' is more formal and encompassingly precise in maritime legal documents.
- craft: 'Craft' can refer to sea or air vehicles of any size, whereas 'vessel' almost always implies watercraft of significant size.
Commonly confused with
- vassal: A 'vassal' is a feudal servant or subordinate state, whereas a 'vessel' is a watercraft or hollow container.
Word family
- vesselness (noun): The state or quality of functioning as a container or vessel (rare).
Collocations
- container vessel
- commercial vessel
- vessel speed
- sister vessel
- flagged vessel
Idioms & expressions
- empty vessels make the most sound (uninformed people talk the loudest)
Example sentences
- "She was a high-sterned vessel of four hundred tons, built in Scarborough in 1842." Literature (Youth by Joseph Conrad (1898))
- "Every vessel operating in coastal waters must maintain a continuous radio watch." Maritime safety regulation
Memory hook
A VESSEL is a giant VASE floating on the sea carrying goods. Vase on the sea = Vessel.
When not to use
Avoid calling a small recreational motorboat or kayak a 'vessel' in casual conversation, though legally it may technically qualify.
Fun facts
- In anatomy, the same root gives us 'blood vessel', which, like a sea vessel, acts as a conduit carrying fluids through a transport network.
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