Viking

American  

[vahy-king] / ˈvaɪ kɪŋ /

noun

(sometimes lowercase)

1. any of the Scandinavian pirates who plundered the coasts of Europe from the 8th to 10th centuries.

2. a sea-roving bandit; pirate.

3. a Scandinavian.

4. U.S. Aerospace. one of a series of space probes that obtained scientific information about Mars.

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Viking British  

/ ˈvaɪkɪŋ /

noun

1. Also called: Norseman.   Northman.  any of the Danes, Norwegians, and Swedes who raided by sea most of N and W Europe from the 8th to the 11th centuries, later often settling, as in parts of Britain

2. any sea rover, plunderer, or pirate

3. either of two unmanned American spacecraft that reached Mars in 1976

4. (modifier) of, relating to, or characteristic of a Viking or Vikings

   a Viking ship

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Etymology

Origin of Viking

1800–10; < Scandinavian; compare Old Norse vīkingr; compare Old English wīcing pirate; etymology disputed

Example Sentences

Powell, along with Layton Davies, uncovered the Viking coins in a field near Leominster.

From BBC • May 5, 2026

Powell, from Newport in South Wales, had been jailed in 2019 for his part in stealing 300 Viking coins and gold jewellery he found in a field in Herefordshire in 2015.

From BBC • May 5, 2026

Hagen and Talactac are confident beyond this year, pointing out that at least half of passengers have booked on Viking before and some 30,000 have three or more cruises booked.

From Barron's • Apr. 15, 2026

Viking is also aware, though, that sometimes its passengers need a nudge.

From Barron's • Apr. 15, 2026

“This guy’s spending all his time with the Viking and Jules. No wonder he’s going crazy.”

From "Tradition" by Brendan Kiely