The movement of international shipments via container using sequential transportation modes (water, air and land) makes use of the most efficient cost-effective methods to move goods. An entire new set of terms has developed around this concept of intermodalism.

Intermodal transportation is generally defined as a system of transport whereby two or more modes of transport are used to transport the same loading unit in an integrated manner. While multimodal is the continuous movement of goods by more then one means of transport.

An example of intermodal is a common shipping container (20', 40' etc) that is delivered to a shippers dock, loaded with freight and sealed, the loaded container is released by the shipper to a transportation company and transported by truck, (rail) truck, to a port where it is loaded on a ship for marine transport, off loaded at the destination port (customs), and moved via truck or rail to the final destination wherethe container is opened and it is unloaded.

An example of multimodal is: the shipper loads pallets of freight, they are released to a shipping co, and loaded into a truck. the pallets of freight is delivered to a marine freight dock where it is loaded onto a ship, carried by the ship across the water to the destination port where it is off loaded to a warehouse or truck (customs) and delivered by truck to the reciever.