Meaning & use
LCL
Last updated
Meanings
abbreviationbusiness
Less than container load: a shipping arrangement where your goods share a container with other people's goods.
Grammar: Read as three letters; used mainly before a noun or as a noun: an LCL shipment, ship LCL.
Patterns
- an LCL shipment
- ship something LCL
- LCL cargo
Because we only had six boxes, we booked an LCL shipment to Rotterdam.
Small companies often ship LCL until their volumes grow.
The freight quote lists FCL and LCL prices separately.
abbreviationmedical
Lymphocytic leukemia: a type of cancer affecting a kind of white blood cell.
Grammar: A medical abbreviation read as letters; usually written as CLL, but LCL appears in some older texts.
Patterns
- LCL diagnosis
The report mentioned LCL, but the doctor preferred the term CLL.
In older medical texts you may still see LCL used for this leukemia.
Common combinations
- LCL shipment
- An LCL shipment is cheaper when your cargo is small.
- LCL cargo
- LCL cargo is grouped with other consignments at the port.
- book LCL
- We booked LCL to avoid paying for a whole container.
- FCL and LCL
- Rates are quoted for both FCL and LCL.
Synonyms and how they differ
- groupage
- A mainly British freight term for the same idea of mixing several shippers' goods in one container.
Opposites
Word family
- FCL abbreviation
- Full container load, the opposite arrangement, where one shipper fills a whole container.
Commonly confused: LCL or LOL?
LCL vs LOL
LOL is internet slang for laughter, while LCL is a shipping or medical abbreviation; they are not related.
Practice
A small exporter with only two pallets would most likely book which kind of shipment?
Choose one answer.
LCL means the goods share a container, which suits small loads; FCL means paying for a whole container, which is wasteful for two pallets.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “LCL”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.