ferry
Americannoun
plural
ferries-
a commercial service with terminals and boats for transporting persons, automobiles, etc., across a river or other comparatively small body of water.
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a ferryboat.
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a service for flying airplanes over a particular route, especially the delivery of airplanes to an overseas purchaser or base of operations.
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the legal right to ferry passengers, cargo, etc., and to charge for the service.
verb (used with object)
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to carry or convey back and forth over a fixed route in a boat or plane.
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to fly (an airplane) over a particular route, especially for delivery.
verb (used without object)
noun
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Also called: ferryboat. a vessel for transporting passengers and usually vehicles across a body of water, esp as a regular service
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such a service
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( in combination )
a ferryman
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a legal right to charge for transporting passengers by boat
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the act or method of delivering aircraft by flying them to their destination
verb
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to transport or go by ferry
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to deliver (an aircraft) by flying it to its destination
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(tr) to convey (passengers, goods, etc)
the guests were ferried to the church in taxis
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of ferry
before 1150; Middle English ferien, Old English ferian to carry; cognate with Old Norse ferja, Gothic farjan; akin to fare
Explanation
A ferry is a boat that carries people, cars, and cargo back and forth across a body of water. The Staten Island Ferry ferries commuters from Manhattan to Staten Island every ten minutes during rush hour. To ferry means to transport by ferry, or to transport in other ferry-like ways, i.e., multiple short trips. If you have an ice-skating birthday party, your dad might ferry a few van loads of kids back to your house afterward, for pizza and cake.
Vocabulary lists containing ferry
Greetings, World Traveler! — List 2
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Drowned City: Hurricane Katrina & New Orleans
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for September 17–September 23, 2022
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
I picked up my bib and a collectible cap near the Staten Island Ferry Terminal at the southern tip of Manhattan and began the walk around 8:30 a.m.—after the latest recommended starting time.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 14, 2026
Executive search firm Korn Ferry conducted the CEO search for Lululemon.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 1, 2026
The Hythe Ferry, linking Hythe and Southampton Town Quay, was suspended in August 2024 after damage was found to its pontoon and supporting structure.
From BBC • Apr. 20, 2026
His band quickly took control of a federal armory and rifle factory in the sleeping town of Harpers Ferry.
From Slate • Apr. 2, 2026
“After it appeared, after years of being dormant in the Twelve Towns and attacking that boy in Boggs Ferry, we knew we had to tame it. To make it ours,” Barbatos said.
From "Witchlings" by Claribel A. Ortega
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.
