barge

American  

[bahrj] / bɑrdʒ /

noun

barges plural

1. a capacious, flat-bottomed vessel, usually intended to be pushed or towed, for transporting freight or passengers; lighter.

2. a vessel of state used in pageants.

   elegantly decorated barges on the Grand Canal in Venice.

3. Navy. a boat reserved for a flag officer.

4. a boat that is heavier and wider than a shell, often used in racing as a training boat.

5. New England (chiefly Older Use). a large, horse-drawn coach or, sometimes, a bus.

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verb (used without object)

barges, present (3rd person singular) barged, past participle, past barging present participle

1. to move clumsily; bump into things; collide.

   to barge through a crowd.

2. to move in the slow, heavy manner of a barge.

verb (used with object)

barges, present (3rd person singular) barged, past participle, past barging present participle

1. to carry or transport by barge.

   Coal and ore had been barged down the Ohio to the Mississippi.

verb phrase

1. barge into

   1. Also barge in on. to force oneself upon, especially rudely; interfere in.

      to barge into a conversation.

   2. to bump into; collide with.

      He started to run away and barged into a passer-by.

2. barge in to intrude, especially rudely.

   I hated to barge in without an invitation.

barge British  

/ bɑːdʒ /

noun

1. a vessel, usually flat-bottomed and with or without its own power, used for transporting freight, esp on canals

2. a vessel, often decorated, used in pageants, for state occasions, etc

3. navy a boat allocated to a flag officer, used esp for ceremonial occasions and often carried on board his flagship

4. humorous any vessel, esp an old or clumsy one

5. informal a heavy or cumbersome surfboard

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verb

1. informal to bump (into)

2. informal (tr) to push (someone or one's way) violently

3. informal (intr; foll by into or in) to interrupt rudely or clumsily

   to barge into a conversation

4. (tr) sailing to bear down on (another boat or boats) at the start of a race

5. (tr) to transport by barge

6. informal (intr) to move slowly or clumsily

Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• barges
  plural

Participles

• barging
  present
• barged
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• barge
  simple
• barges
  simple
• have barged
  perfect
• has barged
  perfect
• am barging
  progressive
• are barging
  progressive
• is barging
  progressive
• have been barging
  perfect progressive
• has been barging
  perfect progressive

Past

• barged
  simple
• had barged
  perfect
• was barging
  progressive
• were barging
  progressive
• had been barging
  perfect progressive

Future

• will barge
  simple
• will have barged
  perfect
• will be barging
  progressive
• will have been barging
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of barge

1250–1300; Middle English < Middle French, perhaps < Latin *bārica; see bark ³

Explanation

A barge is a big, flat boat that can transport heavy goods over water. You might see a barge carrying a load of new cars down a river. Barges are useful for moving very heavy things along canals and rivers. A typical barge can hold more than a thousand tons of cargo, so it's ideal for bulky, weighty goods. Barge is also a verb, meaning both "move by barge" and "shove forward," as when you barge in the door of a crowded party or barge into your brother's room just to bother him. The root is believed to be the Greek baris, "Egyptian boat."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

barge barges barged barging

Elsewhere, lower water volumes in the Missouri and Mississippi River basins threaten to disrupt coal shipments by barge, a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission report warned.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026

Netflix or another streaming winner could barge in to buy the choice bits first.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026

Since his election, Magyar has said his government should not be determining how Hungarians should live, adding it does not want to "barge into anyone's bedroom".

From Barron's ● Jun. 27, 2026

The organization also noted that the barge carrying the fireworks was around two miles from Jackie and Shadow’s nest and that the show was scheduled to finish in under 30 minutes.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 24, 2026

Many men were needed to steer the barge so it would not bump into the river banks.

From "The (Mostly) True Story of Cleopatra's Needle" by Dan Gutman

But then came a foul: one robot barges into the goalkeeper, sending it crashing to the ground.

From Barron's ● Jul. 3, 2026

In La Verne: In a scene filmed at La Verne United Methodist Church, Benjamin Braddock, played by Dustin Hoffman, barges into a church and interrupts a wedding, screaming, “Elaine, Elaine,” in “The Graduate.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 16, 2026

The barges were filled and covered with sediment to create a new island for birds including endangered dunlin, curlew, ringed plover and lapwing.

From BBC ● Jan. 28, 2026

Then she slow-motion struts down an L.A. sidewalk in heels, barges into the meeting, props her bloody, bandaged foot on the table, and somehow still closes the deal with the celebrity stylist.

From Salon ● Dec. 15, 2025

It took ten hours to unload the barges.

From "Between Shades of Gray" by Ruta Sepetys

Before further questions could be asked, a federal agent barged in and said Bušić had to appear before a federal judge.

From Slate ● Jul. 7, 2026

Billions of pounds of alumina barged upriver will feed the smelter, while the metal will typically leave by rail or truck, Plotkin said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 12, 2026

I was sitting in the chair in mid-shave when a bald gentleman barged into the shop searching not for a cut, but a promise.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 22, 2026

Sam Wood's early try gave York a surprise lead before Jai Whitbread barged over to level and make it 6-6 at the break.

From BBC ● Feb. 12, 2026

No one answered immediately, and in the awkward pause C.P. wondered if he had barged in on a group of criminals.

From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson

Another reveals that Sidney has security cameras linked to her phone, yet she forgets about them to go barging into her dark house.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 26, 2026

"It should never have happened like this, whatever the reason," he said, likening the US attack to "someone barging into your house."

From Barron's ● Jan. 6, 2026

Second row Cyril Caseaux scored the only try of the second period, barging over from short range.

From BBC ● May 24, 2025

Videos on social media showed swarms of consumers barging into stores, frantically grabbing as many bags as possible.

From Salon ● May 11, 2025

The real world was at their doorstep, and it was dangerously close to barging in.

From "The Parker Inheritance" by Varian Johnson

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