cargo

noun

car·​go ˈkär-(ˌ)gō 

plural cargoes or cargos

: the goods or merchandise conveyed in a ship, airplane, or vehicle : freight

Dock workers were unloading the ship's cargo.

Synonyms of cargo

• payload
• burden
• loading
• load
• freight

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

Treasury said Caspian had transported IRGC personnel and weapons to Syria and said Meraj had ferried illicit cargo, including weapons, to the Syrian government. — Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 2 Oct. 2026

There is a strong cargo backdrop as shippers scrap for space. — Glenn Taylor, Footwear News, 2 Oct. 2026

History of safety complaints Former pilots of 21 Air, the air-cargo company operating the Amazon Prime plane that fatal Sunday, had previously gone on record shining light on a host of safety complaints well before the crash. — David Goodhue, Miami Herald, 1 Oct. 2026

The company has more than 30 billion data points, with 250 million added monthly, to track cargo using AI. — Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 1 Oct. 2026

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

Phrases Containing cargo

• cargo cult
• cargo pants
• cargo pocket

Rhymes for cargo

• acknow
• aglow
• ago
• airglow
• aloe
• altho
• although
• ammo
• backflow
• backhoe
• banjo
• barbeau

Kids Definition

cargo

noun

car·​go ˈkär-ˌgō 

plural cargoes or cargos

: the goods transported in a ship, airplane, or vehicle : freight