stowaway

1 of 2

noun

stow·​away ˈstō-ə-ˌwā 

: one that stows away

stow away

2 of 2

verb

stowed away; stowing away; stows away

intransitive verb

: to secrete oneself aboard a vehicle as a means of obtaining transportation

Examples of stowaway in a Sentence

Noun

A stowaway was discovered on the ship.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

However, the airplane originated in São Paulo, Brazil, which raises the question of when the stowaway entered the wheel well. —Sheldon H. Jacobson, Chicago Tribune, 20 Jan. 2025

The stowaway was identified as Shemaiah Patrice Small, 33, of California, according to the documents. —Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, 14 Jan. 2025

Verb

While the reports don’t give a sense of Small’s motives, experts say there are many reasons why a person might stow away on an aircraft. —Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, 14 Jan. 2025

There have been multiple recent incidents of people stowing away in airplane wheel wells or boarding without tickets. —Zach Wichter, USA TODAY, 10 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1848, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1879, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

stowaway

1 of 2 noun

stow·​away ˈstō-ə-ˌwā 

: one who stows away : an unregistered passenger

stow away

2 of 2 verb

ˌstō-ə-ˈwā

: to hide aboard a vehicle to obtain transportation