bateau

[ba-toh; French ba-toh]

See more synonyms for bateau on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural ba·teaux

[ba-tohz; French ba-toh] /bæˈtoʊz; French baˈtoʊ/.

Also batteau. Nautical.
1. Chiefly Canadian and Southern U.S..a small, flat-bottomed rowboat used on rivers.
2. a half-decked, sloop-rigged boat used for fishing on Chesapeake Bay; skipjack.
3. (in some regions) a scow.
a pontoon of a floating bridge.

Origin of bateau

1705–15, Americanism; < French; Old French batel, equivalent to bat (< Old English bāt boat) + -el diminutive suffix < Latin -ellus; see -elle

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for bateau

craft, barge, boat, liner, tanker, dinghy, canoe, sailboat, yacht, raft, ship, catamaran, schooner, gondola, bottom, bucket, can, bark, steamer, tub

Examples from the Web for bateau

Historical Examples of bateau

Craig leaped from the bow of the bateau and waded for the last few yards.
Joan of Arc of the North Woods
Holman Day
When he reached the far shore he jumped into a bateau that was pulled up there.
Joan of Arc of the North Woods
Holman Day
They stopped on the bank of the river, where the bateau lay.
Hope and Have
Oliver Optic
As the bateau proceeded, Fanny became more skilful in its management.
Hope and Have
Oliver Optic
Two of our boats were bateau, and the other was Mr. Gracewood's barge.
Field and Forest
Oliver Optic

British Dictionary definitions for bateau

bateau

noun plural -teaux (-təʊz, French -to)

a light flat-bottomed boat used on rivers in Canada and the northern US

Word Origin for bateau

C18: from French: boat, from Old French batel, from Old English bāt; see 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

Word Origin and History for bateau

French-Canadian river boat, 1711, from French bateau, from Old French batel, from Germanic (see boat (n.)).