名词后缀-ship跟“船”毫无关系。它是个本族语派生后缀， 一般与名词相结合构成抽象名词，表示 the position or occupation of 〜（…职业，…行业），the quality or condition of being 〜（…的 性质或状况），the act or skill of〜（…的行为或技能），the relation between〜s (…间的关系）以及the number of〜s (…的数量）等以下是名词与-ship结合的几个例子。

authorship [author n. 作者；-ship →]n. the occupation of an author; writing 著作；写作 / He engaged in the profession of literature, or to speak plainly, the trade of authorship. 他从事文字生涯，说得明白些，就是干写作这一行。

governorship [governor n. 地方长官；-ship →] n. the position or term of office of a governor 地方长官的职位或任期 / He ought to expect the governorship upon the death or removal of the former governor. 他只能等到前任地方官去世或调离才能得到该职位。

friendship [friend n. 朋友；-ship→] n. the condition or quality of being friends 友谊；友好 / Friendship will lend you against the tempest. 友谊能帮你战胜暴风雨。

dictatorship [dictator n. 独裁者；-ship=>“the act or power of a dictator 独裁者的行为或权力” →] n. the rules of a dictator 专政 / The dictatorship of the tyrant was an unhappy time for intellectuals. 那位暴君的专政时期对知识分子来说，并非美好的时光。