It can't. Gross tonnage is a measure of volume, while displacement is a measure of weight.
The light ship displacement is equal to the total displacement minus the deadweight.
The formula to calculate a ship's displacement is: Displacement = Weight of water displaced by the ship = Weight of the ship in air - Weight of the ship in water. This formula helps determine the volume of water that a ship displaces when it is floating in water.
In nautical terms, displacement refers to the weight of water that a ship displaces when it is afloat. It is often used to characterize the size of a ship, as it indicates the volume and weight of water it pushes aside. Ships with higher displacement values are typically larger and heavier.
The principle of Displacement gives 'rise' to buoyancy. When a ship is put upon water with a cargo weight less than the weight of water that the fully loaded ship displaces, it will float.
The amount of water needed to float a ship depends on the ship's weight or displacement. Ships with greater displacement require more water to provide the necessary buoyancy to stay afloat. The concept of buoyancy, based on Archimedes' principle, ensures that a ship displaces an equal volume of water to its own weight in order to stay afloat.
Provided the boats and the ships displace their weight in water without the water coming inboard, they will float and not sink. A boat made of wood is likely to float even when full of water because wood tends to float. It is all to do with displacement and freeboard.
Boat float because of displacement. In fluid mechanics, displacement occurs when an object is immersed in a fluid, pushing it out of the way and taking its place, so that it can be weighed. An object that sinks also displaces an amount of fluid equal to the object's volume. Thus buoyancy is expressed by Archimedes' Principle which states that when this happens, the weight of the object is reduced by its volume times the density of the fluid. If the weight of the object is less than this quantity, it will float, if more it will sink. The amount of fluid displaced is directly related (via Archimedes' Principle) to its weight. Displacement is used as a measure of the weight of ships (see: Hull (watercraft), load line and Stability conditions (watercraft). The displacement of a vessel is equal to the weight of water it displaces when afloat.) Vessels such as naval ships and icebreakers are often measured by their displacements. The unit of measure can be long tons or metric tons depending on the country of origin. The ship can be measured in light condition, fully loaded, or normal (usually fully loaded, but with about two-thirds of fuel and unconsumables). For official purposes, the Washington Naval Treaty introduced the standard displacement, which was the displacement fully loaded but with no fuel or reserve feed water.
Hull displacement & wind speed.
Metal ships float because they are designed to displace a volume of water greater than their own weight. This displacement creates an upward force known as buoyancy, which keeps the ship afloat. Additionally, the metal used in ship construction is carefully chosen and shaped to provide the necessary strength and buoyancy.
Quick and dirty answer: Because they are built to be essentially hollow, they are much larger in volume than the water they displace, and so in effect they are much less dense over all than the water they displace.
Cruise ships vary is size, including their displacement. They range from modest "expedition" ships of under a hundred feet to the big vessels that we see advertised in travel ads. The latter are hundreds of feet long and can displace many, many thousands of tons, even into six figures.
210,000 tons dead weight
210,000 tons dead weight fully loaded