What does docked mean?
"Docked" is the past tense and past participle of the versatile verb "dock," which carries several distinct meanings. Its oldest sense is nautical: a ship is docked when it is brought into a harbour dock or berthed and secured there. A second, figurative sense developed in which money, wages, marks, or points are docked — that is, deducted or withheld, usually as a penalty for poor performance or misconduct, as in "her salary was docked for the unapproved absence." A third sense refers to cutting off an animal's tail, a practice known as tail-docking, though this usage is now restricted and controversial in many countries. In modern aerospace vocabulary, spacecraft are said to have docked when they physically join together in orbit, as when a crew capsule docks with a space station. The word is neutral in tone and fully standard in both British and American English.
verb (past tense and past participle of "dock")The past tense and past participle of "dock," meaning to bring a ship into a dock and secure it there, to deduct part of something such as wages or points, or to cut off an animal's tail.
- (of a ship) arrived and secured at a dock or berth
- (of money, wages, points, etc.) deducted or withheld as a penalty
- (of an animal's tail) cut short; also (of spacecraft) joined to another in orbit
"The ferry docked at Southampton shortly after dawn."
"The container ship docked in Rotterdam after a two-week crossing."
"Because he missed the deadline, a day's wages were docked from his pay."
One word, three very different jobs: it parks ships, shrinks your paycheck, and — historically — shortened dogs' tails.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of docked
As a verb of nautical origin, "dock" comes from the noun "dock" (the enclosed area of water where ships are moored), borrowed in the late Middle Ages from Middle Dutch or Middle Low German "dokke", reflecting the maritime trade links between England and the Low Countries. The wage-deduction sense appears by the early nineteenth century, extending the idea of something being placed or held back. The animal-tail sense is older, attested from around the sixteenth century, possibly influenced by Old English or Scandinavian words for a animal's rear or tail. Related forms include "docker", "dockyard", and "dry dock".
Related word forms
How docked is actually used
Neutral register across uses. The wage-deduction sense is common in workplace contexts, often passive ("was docked"). The nautical sense is standard worldwide; the spacecraft sense arose in the 20th century with space exploration.
Easily confused with docked
"Locked" means fastened so it cannot be opened or moved, while "docked" means brought into a dock, deducted, or tail-clipped — they rhyme but share no meaning.