Meaning & use
shipped
Last updated
“shipped” is a form of “ship”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
verbtransitive
Sent goods to a customer or to another place.
Grammar: Usually passive or in the past tense: the goods were shipped yesterday.
Patterns
- ship something to someone
- ship something from somewhere
- be shipped out
The books were shipped to our warehouse in Chicago.
Your order was shipped this morning, so it should arrive by Friday.
They shipped the furniture from Italy last month.
verbtransitiveinformal
Wanted two people or characters to be in a romantic relationship (fandom use).
Grammar: Often passive: the two characters are shipped by many fans.
Patterns
- ship two characters
- be shipped with someone
- ship someone with someone
Half the fans shipped those two characters after the first season.
She shipped the main character with his rival, even though they never got together.
They were shipped so much that the writers made them a couple.
Word forms
| base form | ship |
|---|---|
| third person singular | ships |
| past tense | shipped |
| past participle | shipped |
| -ing form | shipping |
Common combinations
- shipped out
- The troops were shipped out at dawn.
- shipped directly
- The plants are shipped directly from the grower.
- shipped overseas
- Most of the coffee is shipped overseas.
- shipped by air
- The medicine was shipped by air to reach the hospital quickly.
- shipped free
- All orders over $50 are shipped free.
Synonyms and how they differ
- sent
- More general and common; sent can be used for letters, emails and people, while shipped usually means goods sent in large amounts or by a company.
- transported
- Focuses on the moving of goods from one place to another, often over a long distance; shipped often includes the business of selling and delivery.
- delivered
- Means the goods reached the customer; shipped only means they left the sender, so they are not the same stage of the journey.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: shipped or shoped? shipped or shipped vs. shipped off?
shipped vs shoped
Not a word. The past tense of shop is shopped, with a double p.
shipped vs shipped vs. shipped off
Shipped off is more informal and often means sent away, sometimes without choice, as in 'He was shipped off to boarding school.'
Practice
The package ___ to your address yesterday, so it should arrive soon.
Choose one answer.
The package did not do the action; it was sent, so we use the passive 'was shipped'. 'Shipped' alone would mean the package sent something, which is not possible here.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “shipped”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.