Synonyms of docks

docks 1 of 3

noun

plural of dock

as in wharves

a structure used by boats and ships for taking on or landing cargo and passengers

the boat remained tied up at the dock for a week, waiting for the weather to clear

Synonyms & Similar Words

• wharves
• piers
• quays
• landings
• jetties
• floats
• levees
• marinas
• shipyards
• quais
• moorings
• berths
• dockyards
• slips
• embarcaderos
• wharfages
• quayages

docks

2 of 3

verb (1)

present tense third-person singular of dock

1

as in shortens

to make less in extent or duration

the editorial was docked by about a hundred words to make it fit on the page

Synonyms & Similar Words

• shortens
• cuts back
• reduces
• truncates
• syncopates
• trims
• curtails
• abridges
• abbreviates
• elides
• decreases
• tapers
• sums up
• summarizes
• cuts down
• abstracts
• contracts
• prunes
• encapsulates
• recapitulates
• digests
• compresses
• cuts
• epitomizes
• slashes
• modifies
• pares
• retrenches
• subtracts (from)
• shrinks
• downsizes
• diminishes
• constricts
• lowers
• moderates
• abates
• dwindles
• lessens
• deflates
• de-escalates

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• extends
• prolongs
• lengthens
• supplements
• expands
• elongates
• increases
• enlarges
• adds
• augments
• raises
• protracts
• maximizes
• boosts
• swells
• heightens
• dilates
• amplifies
• escalates
• balloons
• distends
• inflates
• pumps up
• blows up
• aggrandizes

2

as in shaves

to make (something) shorter or smaller with the use of a cutting instrument

the boxer's tail was docked soon after birth

Synonyms & Similar Words

• shaves
• clips
• cuts
• crops
• trims
• mows
• prunes
• bobs
• cuts back
• snips
• polls
• nips
• pares
• shears
• lops (off)
• stumps
• skives
• whittles
• pinches
• manicures
• shortens
• curtails

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• extends
• lengthens
• elongates

docks

3 of 3

verb (2)

present tense third-person singular of dock

as in lands

to stop at or near a place along the shore

the cruise ship docked at the first port of call early the next morning

Synonyms & Similar Words

• lands
• anchors
• arrives
• grounds
• beaches
• makes port
• harbors
• berths
• moors
• ties up
• reaches
• disembarks
• turns up
• shows up
• debarks

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• launches
• sails
• embarks

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of docks

Noun

Vessels had more difficulty berthing at docks during the latest strike, which led to operational challenges even after their conclusion such as irregular peaks in container volumes and a longer queue of vessels entering and leaving the port. — Glenn Taylor, Footwear News, 15 July 2026

City staff supports project City staff told the planning commission on Wednesday that the project calls for adding an outdoor storage area, loading docks, and reestablishing the median at the entrance on Gillham road that was removed years ago. — Dylan Lysen, Kansas City Star, 15 July 2026

The first of the community’s six planned 10-boat slip docks are finished. — Joe Marusak, Charlotte Observer, 15 July 2026

Regal Princess cruise ship departing Southampton docks, southern England, UK. — Steven Yablonski, CBS News, 13 July 2026

Its shoreline folds together cliffs, coves, boat docks and protected green space with a kind of natural splendor rarely found inside a major urban market. — Spencer Elliott, Forbes.com, 10 July 2026

In the heat of summer, large bluegills love to hang in the cool shade below docks. — Joe Cermele, Outdoor Life, 9 July 2026

Reviewers have added them to fishing docks, pool fences, stair railings, and more. — Stephanie Osmanski, Better Homes & Gardens, 7 July 2026

This season, our editors are savoring the activities that take us back to some of our favorite childhood days—jumping off docks, sliding down twisty pool slides, and lingering outside long into the evening. — Cameron Beall, Southern Living, 4 July 2026

Verb

The ship docks close to town, public transport is nearby, and the main sights can be reached on foot. — David Nikel, Forbes.com, 18 June 2026

Ports of call are the various cities or destinations where the ship docks during the cruise. — Aly Walansky, Southern Living, 8 June 2026

All of them are asymptomatic to date, and the Spanish health ministry said that when the ship docks in the Canary Islands, the non-Spanish citizens will be repatriated ⁠to their countries. — Chad De Guzman, Time, 7 May 2026

Once the ship docks in the Canary Islands, Spanish authorities will do a full epidemiological investigation on the ship and begin repatriating travelers who are deemed fit to return home. — Jessica Puckett, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 May 2026

If that's not enough, an alien ship soon docks nearby. — S.c. Stuart, PC Magazine, 18 Mar. 2026

According to Military Sealift Command spokesman Joseph Davila, the SBX-1 typically docks at Ford Island every 12 to 18 months for maintenance. — Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 29 Nov. 2025

The boy’s father, an exasperated man at the mercy of an Amazon-like delivery job that docks him for every second he so much as thinks about his son, is the only person who even wants to go through the effort of looking for him. — David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 7 Sep. 2025