TONNAGE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does tonnage mean? 

• TONNAGE (noun)
  The noun TONNAGE has 1 sense:

1. a tax imposed on ships that enter the US; based on the tonnage of the ship

  Familiarity information: TONNAGE used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• TONNAGE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A tax imposed on ships that enter the US; based on the tonnage of the ship

Classified under:

Nouns denoting possession and transfer of possession

Synonyms:

tonnage; tonnage duty; tunnage

Hypernyms ("tonnage" is a kind of...):

duty; tariff (a government tax on imports or exports)

 Context examples 

There were thirty-six ships of fair tonnage which were reported there during those months.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

The lesson had comprised part of the reign of Charles I., and there were sundry questions about tonnage and poundage and ship- money, which most of them appeared unable to answer; still, every little difficulty was solved instantly when it reached Burns: her memory seemed to have retained the substance of the whole lesson, and she was ready with answers on every point.

(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)

On our little walk along the quays, he made himself the most interesting companion, telling me about the different ships that we passed by, their rig, tonnage, and nationality, explaining the work that was going forward—how one was discharging, another taking in cargo, and a third making ready for sea—and every now and then telling me some little anecdote of ships or seamen or repeating a nautical phrase till I had learned it perfectly.

(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)