aboard

1 of 2

adverb or adjective

ə-ˈbȯrd 

1

: alongside

2

a

: on, onto, or within a vehicle (such as a car or ship)

b

: in or into a group, association, or organization

her second promotion since coming aboard

3

baseball : on base

aboard

2 of 2

preposition

: on, onto, within

go aboard ship

aboard a plane

Examples of aboard in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Adverb or adjective

Within the hour, conservation scientist Lauren Eckert, who is on the board of the Alaska Whale Foundation, had come aboard to give an impromptu talk connecting the ocean’s largest creatures, baleen whales, with its smallest, the tiny floating zooplankton that whales consume in vast quantities. —Kevin West, Travel + Leisure, 4 Jan. 2025

Before long, the foursome was appearing on ABC’s The Lawrence Welk Show and becoming regulars on NBC’s The Andy Williams Show, with two more brothers, Donny and Jimmy, eventually coming aboard. —Mike Barnes, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 Jan. 2025

Preposition

After the funeral, the Boeing 747 that is Air Force One when a sitting president is aboard will carry Carter and his family back to Georgia. —Bill Barrow, Chicago Tribune, 8 Jan. 2025

The incident occurred aboard Flight 161 around 7:30 p.m., local time, the Federal Aviation Administration said in a news release Tuesday. —Muri Assunção, New York Daily News, 8 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Adverb or adjective

Middle English abord, probably in part borrowed from Middle French a bord, a bort "on board," in part from Middle English a- a- entry 1 + bord "board, side of a ship" — more at board entry 1

Preposition

Middle English abord, derivative of abord aboard entry 1

First Known Use

Adverb Or Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Preposition

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

aboard

1 of 2 adverb

ə-ˈbōrd 

-ˈbȯrd

: on, onto, or within a vehicle (as a car, ship, or airplane)

aboard

2 of 2 preposition

: on or into especially as a passenger

go aboard ship