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Language Foundation

consignor

A consignor is the person or company that sends goods by giving them to a carrier for transport to the receiver.

In plain English

The key idea is that this role is the sender in a shipment, not the receiver. It refers to the person or company that hands the goods to a carrier so they can be transported to the receiver.

In context

Here, "consignor" identifies the person or company that is sending the goods on the customs shipping document.

Situation
Completing customs, import, export, duty, declaration, and clearance administration
What it communicates
identifies the sending party in the customs shipping document.

Meaning limits

The term itself only identifies the sending party and does not by itself establish who the receiver is or who the carrier is.

Examples

“The winery was the consignor when it handed the cases to a freight company for delivery to the restaurant.”

Core meaning

“On the customs shipping document, enter the furniture maker as the consignor.”

In context

  • sender Broader Term

    A consignor is a sender in the specific context of goods sent through a carrier.

  • consignee Contrast

    A consignee is the receiving party, not the sending party.