cargo

noun

car·​go ˈkär-(ˌ)gō How to pronounce cargo (audio)
plural cargoes or cargos
: the goods or merchandise conveyed in a ship, airplane, or vehicle : freight
Dock workers were unloading the ship's cargo.

Examples of cargo in a Sentence

The ship was carrying a cargo of crude oil. we put all of our cargo on the pack animals and began our journey through the canyon
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Lincoln returned from the cargo trip and decided to stay in New Salem, about 20 miles northwest of Springfield. Addison Wright, Chicago Tribune, 22 Mar. 2025 FedEx navigated through bottom-line headwinds such as the end of its air cargo contract with the United States Postal Service (USPS) last fall, resulting in a $180 million hit to operating income, Subramaniam said in the call. Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 21 Mar. 2025 Most of the sets were built in Toronto, disassembled, and flown to Iqaluit for reassembly, with each piece put on palettes and packed to fit the cargo plane’s fuselage. Dana Feldman, Forbes, 21 Mar. 2025 Such interference could also wreak havoc on global navigation systems used for everything from banking and cargo shipping to ambulance dispatch. Simone McCarthy, CNN, 21 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for cargo

Word History

Etymology

Spanish, load, charge, from cargar to load, from Late Latin carricare — more at charge entry 1

First Known Use

1657, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of cargo was in 1657

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Cargo.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cargo. Accessed 2 Apr. 2025.

Kids Definition

cargo

noun
car·​go ˈkär-ˌgō How to pronounce cargo (audio)
plural cargoes or cargos
: the goods transported in a ship, airplane, or vehicle : freight

More from Merriam-Webster on cargo

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