Definition

Noun: 1. A ship or aircraft designed and used primarily for carrying cargo, not passengers. This is the most common meaning. A freighter is a commercial vessel or plane whose main purpose is transporting goods. 2. ​(Less common) A person or company that loads a ship or charters space on a ship for transporting goods. This meaning relates to the role of organizing cargo transport.

Examples of Usage

• Noun (Ship/Aircraft):

  • The large freighter was loaded with containers bound for Europe.
  • The company uses a fleet of cargo freighters to ship electronics globally.
  • They converted an old passenger plane into a freighter to transport machinery.

• Noun (Person/Company - less common):

  • The freighter arranged for the goods to be loaded onto the vessel. (This usage is now rare in everyday language).

Advanced Usage

• "Bulk freighter": A ship specifically designed to carry unpackaged bulk cargo, such as grain, coal, or ore, in its holds.
• "Container freighter": A modern cargo ship specifically designed to carry standardized shipping containers.

Variants and Related Words

• Freight (noun): The goods or cargo being transported.
• Freight (verb): To transport goods as cargo.

Synonyms

• Cargo ship / vessel
• Merchant ship
• Freight carrier
• Cargo plane / aircraft

Related Phrases

• Freight forwarder: A person or company that organizes shipments for individuals or corporations to get goods from the manufacturer to a market or final point of distribution. (This is a more common modern term for the "person" meaning of freighter).

Noun

1. a cargo ship
   • they did much of their overseas trade in foreign bottoms