rhizoverbBeta
DictionaryargosyMerchant ship
noun

argosy

A large merchant ship.

Workers unload chests, bales, and jars from the argosy in the harbor.

A large merchant ship sits low in the harbor as dockworkers unload overflowing chests, fabric bales, and jars from its cargo hold.
Etymology
argosyItalianDubrovnik

The ship name derives from Ragusa, now Dubrovnik, a city associated with maritime trade. It came to name a large merchant vessel rather than only ships from that city.

In context

EduClique2:59
[argosies] means where your merchandise your big commercial ships are sailing
The Merchant of Venice Play by William Shakespeare | Act 1 Scene 1 | Part 1 | ICSE Board | EduClique

More examples

  • A painted argosy filled the old seascape.
  • The merchant invested in an argosy bound for distant ports.
  • The tale follows the voyage of a richly loaded argosy.

Forms

argosy · argosies

Similar words

merchantman
Merchantman is a general trading ship; argosy is a literary term for a large, richly laden one.
cargo ship
Cargo ship is the modern ordinary term; argosy evokes older long-distance trade.