Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A wharf or reinforced bank for the loading or unloading of ships or boats.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To furnish with a quay or quays.
  • noun A landing-place; a place where vessels are loaded and unloaded; a wharf: usually constructed of stone, but sometimes of wood, iron, etc., along a line of coast or a river-bank or round a harbor or dock.
  • noun An obsolete or dialectal form of whey.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun A mole, bank, or wharf, formed toward the sea, or at the side of a harbor, river, or other navigable water, for convenience in loading and unloading vessels.
  • transitive verb To furnish with quays.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun nautical A stone or concrete structure on navigable water used for loading and unloading vessels; a wharf.
  • verb To land or tie up at a quay or similar structure, especially used in the phrase "quay up".

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun wharf usually built parallel to the shoreline

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English keye, from Old North French cai, of Celtic origin.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Old Northern French cai, from Old French chai (modern French: quai).

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Examples

  • The rehabilitated timber deck of the quay is a generous public gathering place throughout the year.

    Promenade Samuel-De Champlain by Daoust Lestage 2008

  • The quay is enjoyable, as is the ride out to the islands, but you won’t be tempted to jump into the murky brown waters, and you’ll find the lake difficult to approach on foot, as it’s surrounded by wetlands.

    Visit to Patzcuaro 2000

  • The quay is enjoyable, as is the ride out to the islands, but you won’t be tempted to jump into the murky brown waters, and you’ll find the lake difficult to approach on foot, as it’s surrounded by wetlands.

    Visit to Patzcuaro 2000

  • Tied up at the quay were a couple of sleek black powerboats, and as Shelby saw them, she shot a worried glance at Laura.

    The Overload Protocol Mark Walden 2009

  • Tied up at the quay were a couple of sleek black powerboats, and as Shelby saw them, she shot a worried glance at Laura.

    The Overload Protocol Mark Walden 2009

  • He spoke never a word to the footman, who stood by the gate on the quay, which is always open by day.

    Scenes from a Courtesan's Life 2007

  • The quay was a solid line of smart boutiques and casual but expensive restaurants; under the famous orange awning of Senequier, the beautiful people who sipped aperitifs were better dressed than the patrons of the Ritz bar in Paris.

    Lace Shirley Conran 1982

  • The quay was a solid line of smart boutiques and casual but expensive restaurants; under the famous orange awning of Senequier, the beautiful people who sipped aperitifs were better dressed than the patrons of the Ritz bar in Paris.

    Lace Shirley Conran 1982

  • The quay was a solid line of smart boutiques and casual but expensive restaurants; under the famous orange awning of Senequier, the beautiful people who sipped aperitifs were better dressed than the patrons of the Ritz bar in Paris.

    Lace Shirley Conran 1982

  • The quay was a solid line of smart boutiques and casual but expensive restaurants; under the famous orange awning of Senequier, the beautiful people who sipped aperitifs were better dressed than the patrons of the Ritz bar in Paris.

    Lace Shirley Conran 1982

Comments

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  • Visit Newquay.

    January 29, 2009