Liner

A liner is any cargo or passenger ship running scheduled service along a specific route with published ports of call, excluding ferries and other vessels engaged in short-range trading. Liners are normally unarmed and lightly shielded.

When referring to cargo ships, liner in this sense contrasts with tramp, which refers to a ship engaged in spot-market trade that does not follow a regular schedule or make regular calls at specific ports. When referring to passenger ships, liner in this sense refers to ships providing scheduled transportation between regular ports of call and excludes cruise ships, which voyage merely for recreational purposes and not primarily as a form of transportation between ports.

A starliner is any large and prestigious passenger ship, including cruise ships.