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View synonyms for

boat

[ boht ]

noun

  1. a vessel for transport by water, constructed to provide buoyancy by excluding water and shaped to give stability and permit propulsion.
  2. a small ship, generally for specialized use:

    a fishing boat.

  3. a small vessel carried for use by a large one, as a lifeboat:

    They lowered the boats for evacuation.

  4. a ship.
  5. a vessel of any size built for navigation on a river or other inland body of water.
  6. a serving dish resembling a boat:

    a gravy boat;

    a celery boat.

  7. Ecclesiastical. a container for holding incense before it is placed in the censer.


verb (used without object)

  1. to go in a boat:

    We boated down the Thames.

verb (used with object)

  1. to transport in a boat:

    They boated us across the bay.

  2. to remove (an oar) from the water and place athwartships. Compare ship 1( def 10 ).

boat

/ əʊ /

noun

  1. a small vessel propelled by oars, paddle, sails, or motor for travelling, transporting goods, etc, esp one that can be carried aboard a larger vessel
  2. (not in technical use) another word for ship
  3. navy a submarine
  4. a container for gravy, sauce, etc
  5. a small boat-shaped container for incense, used in some Christian churches
  6. in the same boat
    sharing the same problems
  7. burn one's boats
    See burn 1
  8. miss the boat
    to lose an opportunity
  9. push the boat out informal.
    to celebrate, esp lavishly and expensively
  10. rock the boat informal.
    to cause a disturbance in the existing situation
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. intr to travel or go in a boat, esp as a form of recreation
  2. tr to transport or carry in a boat
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Other Word Forms

  • Dza· adjective
  • Dzl adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of boat1

First recorded before 900; Middle English boot (noun), Old English ; cognate with Old Norse beit
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Word History and Origins

Origin of boat1

Old English ; related to Old Norse beit boat
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Idioms and Phrases

Idioms
  1. in the same boat, in the same circumstances; faced with the same problems:

    The new recruits were all in the same boat.

  2. miss the boat, Informal.
    1. to fail to take advantage of an opportunity:

      He missed the boat when he applied too late to get into college.

    2. to miss the point of; fail to understand:

      I missed the boat on that explanation.

  3. rock the boat. rock 2( def 17 ).

More idioms and phrases containing boat

see burn one's bridges (boats) ; in the same boat ; miss the boat ; rock the boat .
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

During subsequent performances, spectators took in the music from boats and rafts on the water.

From

Mr Wood, who normally lives on the boat with his fiancée and two young children, encountered his first hiccup right at the beginning of his voyage.

From

Latey's production company, says the show "rocked the boat", but is far from an affront to Ethiopian culture.

From

Hundreds wait under a scorching sun to board metal boats bound for Malakal.

From

He lives in Thurso, a town which is on the north coast of Scotland and about as far from the Lords as you can be without getting on a boat.

From

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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