Wharf \Wharf\, n.; pl. Wharfsor Wharves. [AS. hwerf, hwearf,
a returning, a change, from hweorfan to turn, turn about, go
about; akin to D. werf a wharf, G. werft, Sw. varf a
shipbuilder's yard, Dan. verft wharf, dockyard, G. werben to
enlist, to engage, woo, OHG. werban to turn about, go about,
be active or occupied, Icel. hverfa to turn, Goth.
hwa['i]rban, hwarb[=o]n, to walk. Cf. Whirl.]
1. A structure or platform of timber, masonry, iron, earth,
or other material, built on the shore of a harbor, river,
canal, or the like, and usually extending from the shore
to deep water, so that vessels may lie close alongside to
receive and discharge cargo, passengers, etc.; a quay; a
pier.
Commerce pushes its wharves into the sea.
--Bancroft.
Out upon the wharfs they came, Knight and burgher,
lord and dame. --Tennyson.
Note: The plural of this word is generally written wharves in
the United States, and wharfs in England; but many
recent English writers use wharves.
2. [AS. hwearf.]
The bank of a river, or the shore of the
sea. [Obs.]
``The fat weed that roots itself in ease on
Lethe wharf.'' --Shak.
Wharf boat, a kind of boat moored at the bank of a river,
and used for a wharf, in places where the height of the
water is so variable that a fixed wharf would be useless.
[U. S.]
--Bartlett.
Wharf rat. (Zo["o]l.)
(a) The common brown rat.
(b) A neglected boy who lives around the wharfs. [Slang]
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
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