quay

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noun \ ˈkē , ˈkā , ˈkwā \

Definition of quay

:a structure built parallel to the bank of a waterway for use as a landing place

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Examples of quay in a Sentence

docked the ferry at the quay to let the passengers off

Recent Examples of quay from the Web

A small boat with half a dozen people passed by below the quays, with an anarchist flag fluttering in the breeze.

— jenny witt, USA TODAY, "Ahead of G-20, police and protesters clash," 6 July 2017
A new residential development will be built around it featuring parks, quays and embankments alongside the Pregola river.

— siddharth kohli, CNN, "VAR: The good, the bad and the ugly," 4 July 2017
There, the Gormley Canal, which had a quay on Dryades Street (now O.C. Haley Boulevard) and a channel along St. Andrew Street, formed yet another source of employment in Lafayette, making bricks from swamp clay.

— richard campanella, NOLA.com, "How New Orleans took the Garden District from Jefferson Parish," 12 June 2017
Île Sainte-Marguerite is serviced by several companies operating from the quay.

— jennifer ladonne, CNN, "Cannes day trips: The island retreats of Îles de Lérins," 24 May 2017
And researchers in wet suits probing the harbor floor are mapping the old quays and the fabled royal quarter, including, just possibly, the palace of that most beguiling of all Alexandrians, Cleopatra.

— john brownlee, WIRED, "Alexandria Rediscovered," 27 Apr. 2007

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'quay.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of quay

alteration of earlier key, from Middle English, from Middle French dialect (Picard) kay, probably of Celt origin; akin to Breton kae hedge, enclosure; akin to Old English hecg hedge

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1561

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quay Synonyms

Synonyms

float, jetty, landing, levee, pier, quai, dock, wharf

Related Words

berth, mooring, slip; embarcadero [West]; dockyard, marina, quayage, shipyard, wharfage

Other Nautical Terms

avast, aweigh, flotsam, jib, keel, lee, port, starboard, stay

QUAY Defined for English Language Learners

quay

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noun

Definition of quay for English Language Learners

: a structure built on the land next to a river, lake, or ocean that is used as a place for boats to stop for loading and unloading freight and passengers