boat

1 of 2

noun

plural boats
1
a
: a small vessel for travel on water
b
: ship
2
: a boat-shaped container, utensil, or device
a gravy boat
a laboratory boat
3
informal : a large car
A lot of people still think Cadillac makes big floaty boats.Mark LaNeve
boatful noun
boatlike adjective

boat

2 of 2

verb

boated; boating; boats

transitive verb

: to place in or bring into a boat

intransitive verb

: to go by boat
Phrases
in the same boat
: in the same situation or predicament

Examples of boat in a Sentence

Noun He tied the boat to the dock. Cruise ships and other boats filled the harbor. traveling by boat across the ocean Verb We boated over to the island. boated to the picnic site on an island in the bay
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
Lifeguards swam out on paddle boards and used rescue boats to retrieve people from the water. Gary Warth, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 Jan. 2025 His boat was a half mile off the port of Bermagui in New South Wales when sonar used for finding fish picked up the image. Mark Price, Miami Herald, 24 Jan. 2025
Verb
For more than a decade, a legal fight over who gets access to Oswego Lake has pitted the wealthy enclave against two would-be lake users who argue the public should be able to swim and boat there. Kale Williams, Axios, 16 Jan. 2025 Some shippers, however, have argued that the rules could be economically devastating to boating and shipping industries. CBS News, 15 Jan. 2025 See all Example Sentences for boat 

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English boot, from Old English bāt; akin to Old Norse beit boat

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

13th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Time Traveler
The first known use of boat was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near boat

Cite this Entry

“Boat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/boat. Accessed 30 Jan. 2025.

Kids Definition

boat

1 of 2 noun
1
: a small vessel for travel on water
2
3
: a boat-shaped utensil
gravy boat

boat

2 of 2 verb
1
: to put into or carry in a boat
2
: to travel by boat

More from Merriam-Webster on boat

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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