port of entry

noun phrase

1

: a place where foreign goods may be cleared through a customhouse

2

: a place (such as an airport or border crossing) where a person may be permitted to enter a country

Examples of port of entry in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Rather than avoid the border, the two presented themselves at a legal port of entry without documents. — Don Bacon, Washington Post, 25 Sep. 2026

In Tijuana, one tunnel discovered last year stretched from Tijuana to what appeared to be a Buy 4 Less store near the Otay Mesa port of entry. — Steve Fisher, Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2026

The department’s Community Partnership Bureau Counterfeit and Piracy Enforcement Team (CAPE) was tipped off in early August to a shipment that was intercepted at one of the Golden State’s ports of entry. — Kate Nishimura, Footwear News, 2 Sep. 2026

Martinez argued that losing access to nearby facilities could pull officers away from ports of entry for longer periods, leaving fewer personnel available to staff inspection lanes. — Brittany Miller, FOXNews.com, 18 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1714, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for port of entry

• complementary
• elementary
• gentry
• sentry