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

My boss there, Kevin, dressed like a little kid—T-shirt, cargo shorts, low-top sneakers—and had a boyish crew cut to match. — Claire Stapleton, New Yorker, 18 July 2026

Archer expects to use the infrastructure during peak operating periods, while BETA’s commercial customers can access the same chargers for cargo flights and medical transport. — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 17 July 2026

Indeed, that's enough time for Weyland-Yutani to colonize LV-426 and — just maybe — pay a visit to that mysterious spaceship with all those eggs in its cargo hold. — Richard Edwards, Space.com, 17 July 2026

Musk has boasted SpaceX’s Starship for years as the firm aspires to ferry cargo and humans to the moon and Mars, and at about 400 feet tall, the rocket is considered the largest ever. — Ty Roush, Forbes.com, 17 July 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