vessel

Meanings

1. 1nouncountableformal

   A boat or ship, especially a fairly large one.

   Grammar: Countable and rather formal: a fishing vessel.

   Patterns

   • a vessel carrying something

   The vessel docked at dawn.

   A fishing vessel rescued the sailors.

   Coast guards boarded the vessel.

2. 2nouncountable

   A hollow container, such as a bowl, jar or cup, that holds liquid.

   Grammar: Countable: a ceramic vessel.

   Patterns

   • a vessel for something

   The museum displays ancient clay vessels.

   Pour the mixture into a large vessel.

   The priest drank from a silver vessel.

3. 3nouncountablemedicalbiology

   A tube in the body of a person, animal or plant that carries blood or other fluid.

   Grammar: Countable and usually with another word: a blood vessel.

   Patterns

   • a blood vessel

   A tiny vessel in her eye burst.

   Exercise strengthens the blood vessels.

   The plant's vessels carry water upward.

Word forms

Common combinations

blood vessel

The doctor checked the blood vessel.

naval vessel

A naval vessel patrolled the coast.

sailing vessel

The old sailing vessel was restored.

empty vessel

An empty vessel makes the most noise, the saying goes.

drinking vessel

The archaeologists found an ancient drinking vessel.

Synonyms and how they differ

ship

Ship is a plain everyday word for a large boat, while vessel is more formal and can include small boats.

container

Container is broader, including boxes and bags, while vessel is for liquids.

craft

Craft covers boats and aircraft, whereas vessel suggests water.

Word family

vascular adjective

relating to the vessels that carry blood or sap

vessels noun

the plural of vessel

vase noun

an ornamental container for flowers

Commonly confused: vessel or vassal?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “vessel”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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