port

port¹

—portless, adj.

/pawrt, pohrt/, n.

1. a city, town, or other place where ships load or unload.

2. a place along a coast in which ships may take refuge from storms; harbor.

3. Also called port of entry. Law. any place where persons and merchandise are allowed to pass, by water or land, into and out of a country and where customs officers are stationed to inspect or appraise imported goods.

4. a geographical area that forms a harbor: the largest port on the eastern seaboard.

5. Informal. an airport.

[bef. 900; ME, OE < L portus harbor, haven; akin to FORD]

Syn. 2. anchorage. See harbor.

port²

/pawrt, pohrt/, n.

1. the left-hand side of a vessel or aircraft, facing forward.

adj.

2. pertaining to or designating port.

3. located on the left side of a vessel or aircraft.

v.t., v.i.

4. to turn or shift to the port, or left, side.

[1570-80; special use of PORT⁴]

port³

/pawrt, pohrt/, n.

any of a class of very sweet wines, mostly dark-red, originally from Portugal.

[1695-95; earlier Oporto, (Port) O Port < Pg Oporto OPORTO, the main port of shipment for the wines of Portugal]

port⁴

/pawrt, pohrt/, n.

1. an opening in the side or other exterior part of a ship for admitting air and light or for taking on cargo. Cf. porthole (def. 1).

2. Mach. an aperture in the surface of a cylinder, for the passage of steam, air, water, etc.

3. a small aperture in an armored vehicle, aircraft, or fortification through which a gun can be fired or a camera directed.

4. Computers. a data connection in a computer to which a peripheral device or a transmission line from a remote terminal can be attached.

5. the raised center portion on a bit for horses.

6. Chiefly Scot. a gate or portal, as to a town or fortress.

v.t.

7. Computers. to create a new version of (an application program) to run on a different hardware platform (sometimes fol. by over).

[bef. 950; ME, OE < L porta gate; akin to portus PORT¹]

port⁵

/pawrt, pohrt/, v.t.

1. Mil. to carry (a rifle or other weapon) with both hands, in a slanting direction across the front of the body, with the barrel or like part near the left shoulder.

n.

2. Mil. the position of a rifle or other weapon when ported.

3. Archaic. manner of bearing oneself; carriage or deportment.

[1560-70; < F porter < L portare to carry; see FARE]

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I

Input/output conduit for personal computers.

The serial port was created as an interface between data terminal equipment and data-communications equipment. It processes data sequentially, as a series of bits, and is used to connect equipment (e.g., a modem or mouse) to the computer. The parallel port processes several data bits in parallel and is used to connect peripherals such as computer printers and optical scanners to the computer. The parallel port is faster, but the serial port is cheaper and requires less power. See also USB.

II

Sweet, fortified wine of rich taste and aroma made in Portugal.

The name derives from Porto, the town where it is traditionally aged and bottled. Most port is red, but lesser amounts of tawny and white are produced. Peculiar to the manufacture of port is a large dose of brandy given to the still-fermenting liquid (called must). Much time, often decades, is needed for the maturing of fine ports.

III

(as used in expressions)

Port Arthur

Port de France

Port Blair

Port Jackson

Port Louis

Port Moresby

Port of Spain

Port Said

Port au Prince

Port Vila

Cinque Ports

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▪ wine

also called  Porto,  

      specifically, a sweet, fortified, usually red wine of considerable renown from the Douro region of northern Portugal, named for the town of Oporto where it is aged and bottled; also, any of several similar fortified wines produced elsewhere. The region of true port production is strictly delimited by Portuguese law. The soil and grapes, and the skill of Oporto vintners in blending, produce wines of remarkable character, with types running through a series of flavours. Vintage port, the finest, is not blended; but harvests deemed worthy to produce it are rare. The full richness of the port taste is found in dark vintage and vintage character ports; these types are taken from the cask after two or three years and complete their aging in the bottle. Vintage character port is a blend of best wines, sometimes called crusted port because, as with vintage port, it forms a crust within the bottle. Ruby port is a blend of younger wines. Tawny port is blended and matures in cask, changing its colour.

      Peculiar to the vinification of port is a large dosage of brandy given to the still fermenting must, by which the character of the wine is greatly changed. Much time is needed for the maturing of ports; in 1950, for example, 1912 port was still excellent. There is some white port, usually made from white grapes, but it is not of equal distinction. The name port has been appropriated by certain wines of other countries, sometimes not aged, often not from the same grapes.

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