to sail about on a pleasure trip.
to sail about, as a warship patrolling a body of water.
to travel about without a particular purpose or destination.
to fly, drive, or sail at a constant speed that permits maximum operating efficiency for sustained travel.
to travel at a moderately fast, easily controllable speed.
cruising along the highway enjoying the scenery.
to travel about slowly, looking for customers or for something demanding attention.
Taxis and police cars cruise in the downtown area.
to go or travel (often followed byover ).
Let's cruise over to my house after the concert.
Informal. to go about on the streets or in public areas in search of a sexual partner.
to cruise in (a specified area).
patrol cars cruising the neighborhood; to cruise the Caribbean.
Informal.
to move slowly through or visit (a street, park, bar, etc.) in search of a sexual partner.
to make sexual overtures to; attempt to arouse the sexual interest of.
to inspect (a tract of forest) for the purpose of estimating lumber potential.
the act of cruising.
a pleasure voyage on a ship, usually with stops at various ports.
(intr) to make a trip by sea in a liner for pleasure, usually calling at a number of ports
to sail or travel over (a body of water) for pleasure in a yacht, cruiser, etc
(intr) to search for enemy vessels in a warship
(intr) (of a vehicle, aircraft, or vessel) to travel at a moderate and efficient speed
informal (intr) to search the streets or other public places for a sexual partner
1645–55; < Dutch kruisen to cross, cruise, derivative of kruis cross
If your mom announces “We’re taking a cruise!” then pack your bags. A cruise is a vacation spent on a ship that sails the ocean, periodically stopping in ports for sightseeing. Cruise can also be a verb that describes sailing around aimlessly for fun. You might cruise the canals of Venice in a small boat. If you don’t live in Venice, you can still cruise — but you might do it in your car. Cruise can be used to describe a leisurely drive taken just for fun. You might cruise around the neighborhood on a Saturday with no real destination in mind. Cruise can also describe traveling easily at a moderate speed.
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Passengers had been running low on food and water because the cruise ship was unable to dock in Vidin, and another boat that was called in to help was unable to get close enough.
From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2026
Local officials said the vessel was a "taxi" boat - vessels which cruise along the coast and pick up their paying customers who are waiting in the sea.
From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2026
When Gary Breslau boards a cruise ship, he doesn’t want fun.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
In April, the firm said it would start making cruise missiles for the first time as part of a joint venture with Dutch defence firm Destinus.
From Barron's ● Jul. 29, 2026
Then adds, “A few years back, I remember hearing about a stranded cruise ship. They airdropped them Spam and Pop-Tarts. I don’t know about you, but I’d rather have MoonPies.”
From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman
Cruise lines often don’t provide cash reimbursements; instead, their coverage is typically a credit toward a future cruise.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 9, 2026
Earlier this year, a widely circulated 15-second AI-generated video of Brad Pitt fighting Tom Cruise on a rooftop sparked outrage across Hollywood.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 3, 2026
The complaints were linked to Tesla’s Autopilot system, as well as Full Self-Driving and Traffic Aware Cruise Control.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026
Cruise passengers left stranded in Budapest for two days during a heatwave after the ship's air conditioning failed will now be flown home.
From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026
I was probably the only child in America who was horrified when Dustin Hoffman forgot to thank Tom Cruise in his Oscar acceptance speech for best actor back in 1989.
From "Americanized" by Sara Saedi
River cruises have long been known as the quiet, slightly dull counterparts to ocean liners.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
We consume lists of the worst airports and wonder at accounts of illness-plagued cruises.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026
Frederiksen informed the King while he was on board the Royal Yacht Dannebrog, the family's residence when they are on summer cruises or official visits overseas.
From BBC ● Jun. 2, 2026
It’s more expensive being single — you’re responsible for all the bills, and you’re subject to single supplements at hotels and on cruises.
From MarketWatch ● May 20, 2026
The patrol car with flashing lights cruises down the street.
From "The Hate U Give" by Angie Thomas
He said he’d led a charmed life until his 40s, when a divorce unsettled his sense of having cruised along on luck, intelligence and hard work.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
But they were outplayed on Sunday as Australia cruised to a 66-47 win at The Hydro in Glasgow.
From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026
Nike cruised on popular lifestyle sneakers—Air Jordan 1s, Air Force 1s and Dunks—for too long and fell behind on running.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
Replacement Henry Pollock scored a second-half hat-trick as England cruised to victory and ended a five-Test losing streak against an ill-disciplined and disjointed Fiji in Liverpool.
From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2026
They cruised low to the ground, skimming over bushes, dodging tree trunks, and swishing past branches.
From "Fablehaven" by Brandon Mull
Which is funny, because when I think about cruising, I don’t revisit the miserable 36 hours that norovirus confined us in our cabin.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026
So she and relatives of at least five other trapped people stood in the road where rescue teams kept cruising past, and blocked it, demanding attention.
From Barron's ● Jun. 28, 2026
Hardest hit will be older agents cruising on renewals of an existing book of home and auto policies, according to agents.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 17, 2026
When Hollywood deities Grace Kelly and Cary Grant were shown cruising along the French Riviera in a beautiful, sleek Sunbeam Alpine in To Catch a Thief, for example, they epitomised silver-screen elegance and savoir-faire.
From BBC ● Jun. 14, 2026
On the night of February 17, 1943, Knut Haukelid and the other Gunner- side men hunched inside a British plane, cruising 10,000 feet above the North Sea.
From "Bomb" by Steve Sheinkin
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.
