steamship company
1
3.3
- noun
- /ˈstiːmʃɪp ˈkʌmpəni/
- Archaic
:
compañía de vapor
- Though he had sold his steamship company, he remained a commission merchant and banker.
Examples
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The steamship company guarantees safe transport of goods across the sea.
-
Some of the steamship companies provided free accommodation to emigrants awaiting embarkation.
Academic text (1993) -
I'm one of the agents for the steamship company.
-
By the early 1860s, almost the whole of the British traffic passed into the hands of the steamship companies.
Academic text (1993) -
I also hope that federal authorities feel compelled to bring pressure to bear on behalf of Holland emigrants against unscrupulous agents and steamship companies.
Academic text (1993) -
When I just happened to mention that I'd intended to visit America, the son of an owner of one of the steamship companies gave me the name of his first captain, whom I called on the following day, and who politely shook my hand and bowed before placing me gratis in a cabin of the finest class.
Fiction book (1997) -
In 1866, Tietgen had gathered most of the small Danish steamship companies in the United Steamship Company, which later tended to swallow new ones; this firm enjoyed a near hegemonic position in Denmark's domestic and international traffic.
Academic text (1993) -
Next to the invention of the microchip, the most significant step toward a global economy occurred when Malcolm McLean, the trucking entrepreneur, bought a steamship company in 1955 and introduced the concept of shipping cargo-laden truck trailers.
Academic text (2005) -
I called the steamship company to book my tickets for the cruise.
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Many travelers prefer to use a steamship company for long-distance voyages.
Synonyms
10
2.8
A business that sends goods by boat between countries
1
4.7
A company that operates steamships to carry people and goods across the sea
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a company engaged in operating steamships' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'steamship' (a boat driven by steam power) with 'company' (an organization). This simple noun–noun composition follows common compounding patterns in English and other languages, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
Steamship company comes from a time when ships were moved by steam. A steamship is a ship pushed along by steam and a company that owned and ran those ships, so the phrase means 'a business that operates steam-powered ships'.