What does wharfage mean?
Wharfage is a formal maritime and commercial term for the fees charged when a vessel uses a wharf, as well as for the space or right associated with that use. In everyday business language, it most often appears on shipping invoices and port bills, where it covers the cost of using the wharf and sometimes handling, storing, or keeping goods there. A second, more specialized use refers to the land or space occupied by a wharf, especially in leases, property descriptions, and port records. The word can also denote the legal right to use a wharf. Wharfage is related to “wharf,” the structure beside a harbor where ships are loaded and unloaded, but the two words are not interchangeable: the wharf is the place, while wharfage is what is paid or what is held in connection with it. The term is most useful in contracts, shipping documents, and historical port language.
nounWharfage means the fees or charges for using a wharf or handling goods there; by extension, it can also mean the space occupied by or available at a wharf, or the right to use a wharf.
- Fees or charges for the use of a wharf, including charges for handling or storing goods there.
- The space occupied by a wharf or available for use at a wharf.
- The right or privilege of using a wharf.
"The shipping company paid wharfage for the use of the terminal while the containers were unloaded."
"The importer was charged additional wharfage for keeping the shipment on the wharf over the weekend."
"Under the lease, the tenants have the right of wharfage adjoining their warehouse."
The plural is uncommon but can be used for separate wharfage charges or arrangements.
"The port published revised wharfages for the three commercial terminals."
Wharfage is the hidden harbor invoice: the price of putting a ship alongside a wharf and doing business there.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does wharfage come from?
Wharfage was formed in English by adding the suffix -age to wharf. The compound is recorded from the mid-17th century, initially in the sense of space occupied by a wharf and later also in commercial senses connected with its use and charges. The element wharf comes through Middle English and Middle Dutch from a Germanic word associated with a bank or shore, so the modern word belongs to a long-established English maritime vocabulary.
How wharfage is actually used
Wharfage is chiefly used in maritime, port, shipping, and commercial contexts. It is formal and often appears in contracts, tariffs, invoices, and historical accounts. It is usually treated as a mass noun, though the plural can be used for separate charges or arrangements.
Easily confused with wharfage
A wharf is the structure along a harbor where vessels load or unload; wharfage refers to the fees, space, or right associated with using it.
Quayage is the charge for using a quay, while wharfage is the corresponding term for charges, space, or rights connected with a wharf.