tonnage

noun

ton·​nage ˈtə-nij 

1

a

: the cubical content of a merchant ship in units of 100 cubic feet

b

: the displacement of a warship

2

a

: total weight in tons shipped, carried, or produced

b

: impressively large amount or weight

3

: a duty formerly levied on every tun of wine imported into England

4

a

: a duty or impost on vessels based on cargo capacity

b

: a duty on goods per ton transported

5

: ships in terms of the total number of tons registered or carried or of their carrying capacity

Examples of tonnage in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

How Splash Became a Recovery Otter Otters can be trained through positive reinforcement, and a surprising tonnage of Internet writing and YouTube videos exist online for how to train them. —Frederick Dreier, Outside, 11 Nov. 2025

That’s a lot of tonnage, but requires perspective. —Bob Woods, CNBC, 9 Nov. 2025

These buying executives indicate that advertisers are certainly interested in Netflix’ progress in selling advertising, but note that the company has probably had more success in striking sponsorship deals of individual titles rather than selling sheer tonnage of its inventory. —Brian Steinberg, Variety, 5 Nov. 2025

For October, tonnage per day declined 7 percent. —Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 3 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

in sense 3, from Middle English, from Anglo-French, from tonne tun; in other senses, from ton entry 1 — more at tunnel

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Rhymes for tonnage

• dunnage

Kids Definition

tonnage

noun

ton·​nage ˈtən-ij 

1

: a tax on ships based on tons carried

2

: ships in terms of the total number of tons that are or can be carried

3

: total weight in tons shipped, carried, or mined