Definition of TANKER

tanker

Plural: tankers

Noun

  • A ship, aircraft, or vehicle designed to transport bulk liquids.
  • a cargo ship designed to carry crude oil in bulk
  • a soldier who drives a tank
  • A tankship, a vessel used to transport large quantities of liquid.
  • A motor truck with a tank to hold bulk liquid (with or without internal baffles).
  • A fuel tanker, petrol tanker, road tanker.
  • An aircraft carrying a large supply of jet fuel or avgas for aerial refueling of other aircraft, plus equipment allowing the in-air transfer of fuel.
  • An aircraft built or modified to carry water and/or fire retardant for dropping on wildfires.
  • A tank car.
  • Member of a tank crew, or of an armoured unit.
  • A longboard.

Verb

  • To transport (oil, etc.) in a tanker.
  • To carry more fuel than necessary for a flight, in order to avoid having to refuel at a destination where fuel is more expensive or in short supply.

Examples

  • I swung the tanker around just in time to take off with the lip.
  • Playing "TANKER" felt like deploying a massive vessel across the Scrabble board, carrying a heavy score.
  • While our ground teams cut firebreaks in the brush, the tankers kept the fire in the mountains at bay with frequent drops of water and retardant.
  • Without the KC-46 tankers orbiting in friendly airspace, our fighters would've run out of fuel long before reaching the combat zone.

Origin / Etymology

From tank + -er.

Synonyms

oil tanker, oiler, tank driver, tank ship, air tanker, tank truck, tanker aircraft, tanker truck, tankist, zipperhead

Scrabble Score: 10

tanker: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Word
tanker: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
tanker: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 11

tanker: valid Words With Friends Word