✨📕 The NEWThe NEW Collegiate Dictionary, 12th Edition Over 5,000 words added — Buy Now! Collegiate DictionaryBuy Now!

tanker

noun

tank·​er ˈtaŋ-kər How to pronounce tanker (audio)
1
a
: a cargo ship fitted with tanks for carrying liquid in bulk
b
: a vehicle on which a tank is mounted to carry fluids
also : a cargo airplane for transporting fuel
2
: a member of a military tank crew

Examples of tanker in a Sentence

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.
The United States has launched one of its most aggressive crackdowns yet on Iran’s clandestine oil trade, blacklisting a web of companies, intermediaries, and tankers that Washington says bankroll Tehran’s armed forces. Amir Daftari, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Nov. 2025 Both sides of Interstate 205 through Tracy have fully reopened after being shut down Tuesday afternoon when a tanker overturned on the freeway, triggering a large hazardous materials response and major traffic delays, officials said. CBS News, 18 Nov. 2025 Reuters — Iran confirmed on Saturday that its Revolutionary Guards had seized a tanker in Gulf waters carrying a cargo of petrochemicals bound for Singapore over alleged violations, Iranian state media reported. Reuters, CNN Money, 15 Nov. 2025 The tanker was previously sailing off the United Arab Emirates' coast, maritime sources said on Friday, and was carrying a cargo of high-sulphur gasoil through the Indian Ocean en route to Singapore from Sharjah in the UAE. Jonathan Saul, USA Today, 14 Nov. 2025 See All Example Sentences for tanker

Word History

First Known Use

1900, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of tanker was in 1900

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Tanker.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tanker. Accessed 28 Nov. 2025.

Kids Definition

tanker

noun
tank·​er ˈtaŋ-kər How to pronounce tanker (audio)
: a vehicle (as a ship, truck, or aircraft) designed for the transportation of liquids

More from Merriam-Webster on tanker

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!