Quay

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /kiː/

Definitions

1. A structure built along a waterfront where ships can dock to load or unload cargo and passengers
2. A platform or area adjacent to a body of water designed for the docking and handling of vessels, facilitating the loading and unloading of goods and people
3. An elevated surface at the shoreline that provides access for maritime transport to embark or disembark cargo and travelers

Etymology: The spelling "quay" is a case of deliberate respelling. English had long used "key" for a landing place beside water, but in the 1690s writers changed the spelling to look like French "quai," even though the English pronunciation stayed the same as "key." So the word you read is a French-looking costume on an older English word. That older word came into English from Old French "kay" or "cail," meaning an enclosure or fenced area. Its ultimate source lies in Gaulish, the Celtic language of ancient Gaul, where a similar word meant "enclosure." The same root gave Welsh "cae," meaning field, and it is the root behind the English word "hedge," which once described a fenced boundary as well. The two words are doublets, meaning they share a common ancestor but reached English by different routes. The original idea was simply a fenced space, and a quay was the walled or enclosed edge where ships tied up. The meaning of enclosure has been replaced by the meaning of the structure itself.

Synonyms: wharf, pier, dock