Shipping is the carrying of goods by sea, or ships as a whole. Shipping costs, the shipping lanes, international shipping.
It moves the overwhelming majority of world trade by weight and is the cheapest transport there is per tonne-mile, which is why almost everything travels this way. It also produces a significant share of global emissions. In American use, shipping covers delivery by any means.
1nounshippingThe carrying of goods by sea.
“The Suez Canal is one of the busiest routes for shipping between Europe and Asia.”
shipping is a transport industry.
Ship plus -ing, from Old English scipian, to take ship or equip a ship.
Old English
scipian — to take ship; put in order, equip, man a ship
Middle English
schipping
English, today
shipping
Built from
From Middle English schipping, schyppynge, from schippen, schipen (“to take ship, navigate”), from Old English scipian (“to take ship; put in order, equip, man a ship”), equivalent to ship + ing.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA