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View synonyms for board

board

[ bawrd ]

noun

  1. a piece of wood sawed thin, and of considerable length and breadth compared with the thickness.
  2. a flat slab of wood or other material for some specific purpose:

    a cutting board.

  3. a sheet of wood, cardboard, paper, etc., with or without markings, for some special use, as a checkerboard or chessboard.
  4. boards,
    1. Theater. the stage:

      The play will go on the boards next week.

    2. the wooden fence surrounding the playing area of an ice-hockey rink.
    3. a racing course made of wood, used especially for track meets held indoors:

      This will be his first time running on boards.

  5. Bookbinding. stiff cardboard or other material covered with paper, cloth, or the like to form the covers for a book.
  6. Building Trades. composition material made in large sheets, as plasterboard or corkboard.
  7. a table, especially to serve food on.
  8. daily meals, especially as provided for pay:

    The charge at the time was twenty dollars a day for room and board.

  9. an official group of persons who direct or supervise some activity:

    The motion was approved by the board of directors.

  10. Nautical.
    1. the side of a ship.
    2. one leg, or tack, of the course of a ship beating to windward.
  11. Railroads. a fixed signal or permanent sign regulating traffic.
  12. a flat surface, as a wall or an object of rectangular shape, on which something is posted, as notices or stock-market quotations:

    a bulletin board.

  13. Computers.
  14. a switchboard.
  15. Australian.
    1. the area of a woolshed where shearing is done.
    2. a crew of shearers working in a particular woolshed.
    3. sheep about to be sheared.
  16. Obsolete. the edge, border, or side of anything.


verb (used with object)

  1. to cover or close with boards (often followed by up or over ):

    They just boarded up the house and moved away.

    We had to board over the well to keep animals from getting in there.

  2. to furnish with meals, or with meals and lodging, especially for pay:

    They boarded him for $50 a week.

  3. to go on board of or enter (a ship, train, etc.).
  4. to allow on board:

    We will be boarding passengers in approximately ten minutes.

  5. to come up alongside (a ship), as to attack or to go on board:

    The pirate ship boarded the clipper.

  6. Obsolete. to approach; accost.

verb (used without object)

  1. to take one's meals, or be supplied with food and lodging at a fixed price:

    Several of us board at the same rooming house.

  2. Ice Hockey. to hit an opposing player with a board check.

board

/ bɔːd /

noun

  1. a long wide flat relatively thin piece of sawn timber
    1. a smaller flat piece of rigid material for a specific purpose

      ironing board

    2. ( in combination )

      breadboard

      cheeseboard

  2. a person's food or meals, provided regularly for money or sometimes as payment for work done (esp in the phrases full board, board and lodging )
  3. archaic.
    a table, esp one used for eating at, and esp when laden with food
    1. sometimes functioning as plural a group of people who officially administer a company, trust, etc

      a board of directors

    2. ( as modifier )

      a board meeting

  4. any other committee or council

    a board of interviewers

  5. the boards
    plural the acting profession; the stage
  6. stiff cardboard or similar material covered with paper, cloth, etc, used for the outside covers of a book
  7. a flat thin rectangular sheet of composite material, such as plasterboard or chipboard
    1. a list on which stock-exchange securities and their prices are posted
    2. the stock exchange itself
  8. nautical
    1. the side of a ship
    2. the leg that a sailing vessel makes on a beat to windward
  9. the part of the floor of a sheep-shearing shed, esp a raised part, where the shearers work
  10. the killing floor of an abattoir or freezing works
    1. any of various portable surfaces specially designed for indoor games such as chess, backgammon, etc
    2. ( as modifier )

      board games

    1. a set of hands in duplicate bridge
    2. a wooden or metal board containing four slots, or often nowadays, a plastic wallet, in which the four hands are placed so that the deal may be replayed with identical hands
  11. the hull of a sailboard, usually made of plastic, to which the mast is jointed and on which a windsurfer stands
  12. go by the board
    to be in disuse, neglected, or lost

    in these days courtesy goes by the board

  13. on board
    on or in a ship, boat, aeroplane, or other vehicle
  14. sweep the board
    1. (in gambling) to win all the cards or money
    2. to win every event or prize in a contest
  15. take on board
    to accept (new ideas, situations, theories, etc)
“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


verb

  1. to go aboard (a vessel, train, aircraft, or other vehicle)
  2. nautical to come alongside (a vessel) before attacking or going aboard
  3. to attack (a ship) by forcing one's way aboard
  4. tr; often foll by up, in, etc to cover or shut with boards
  5. intr to give or receive meals or meals and lodging in return for money or work
  6. sometimes foll by out to receive or arrange for (someone, esp a child) to receive food and lodging away from home, usually in return for payment
“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
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Derived Forms

  • ˈboardable, adjective
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Other Words From

  • board·a·ble adjective
  • board·like adjective
  • re·board verb (used with object)
  • un·board·ed adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of board1

First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English bord “board, table, shield”; cognate with Dutch boord “board,” bord “plate,” German Bort, Old Norse borth, Gothic -baurd
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Word History and Origins

Origin of board1

Old English bord ; related to Old Norse borth ship's side, table, Old High German bort ship's side, Sanskrit bardhaka a cutting off
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Idioms and Phrases

Idioms
  1. across the board,
    1. Racing. betting on a horse or dog to finish first, second, or third, so that any result where a selection wins, places, or shows enables the bettor to collect.
    2. applying to or affecting every person, class, group, etc.
  2. go by the board,
    1. to go over the ship's side.
    2. to be destroyed, neglected, or forgotten:

      All his devoted labor went by the board.

  3. on board, Also .
    1. on or in a ship, plane, or other vehicle:

      There were several movie stars on board traveling incognito.

    2. Baseball. on base:

      There were two men on board as the next batter came up.

    3. present and functioning as a member of a team or organization.
    4. in agreement; aligned (usually followed by with ):

      If we want to achieve our goals, we have to get the CEO on board with our plan.

  4. on the boards, in the theatrical profession:

    The family has been on the boards since grandfather's time.

  5. tread the boards. tread ( def 23 ).

More idioms and phrases containing board

see across the board ; back to the drawing board ; bed and board ; bulletin board ; by the board ; go overboard ; on board ; open and aboveboard ; room and board ; stiff as a board ; tread the boards .
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Example Sentences

The Wall Pops cork boards are a great option when aesthetics are of utmost importance.

Once the flames die down, agencies like the state water resources board and the Army Corps of Engineers will need to go in and clean up debris before rains mobilize any toxic byproducts.

That has yet to happen, because representatives of the workers involved asked the board to reconsider its December ruling.

During litigation between the city and Kinder Morgan, local water quality board demanded to know why the city wouldn’t take that water, at least 500,000 gallons per day.

You’ve been told in a board meeting that you are the worst businessperson they’ve ever met, and your executive coach said that it was incredible so many people have stayed by your side for so long when they can’t stand you.

From Fortune

Meanwhile, almost exactly 30 years after the trial, the judge left his home to board a steamboat and was never heard from again.

Chérif was arrested in Paris in January 2005 as he was about to board a plane to Damascus along with a man named Thamer Bouchnak.

On his eighth try, more than three decades after he went in, the parole board finally voted to release Sam.

The Supreme Court eventually stepped in and ended legal segregation in the landmark 1954 decision, Brown v. Board of Education.

The fate of AirAsia Flight 8501 and the 162 souls on board is a tragedy, but it will not remain a mystery for much longer.

The Spaniards captured two schooners, having on board 22 officers and 30 men, all of whom were hanged or sent to the mines.

She had just left the wharf at Cincinnati for Louisville, with 225 passengers on board, of whom but 124 were saved.

The patache was never seen again, and there is not much doubt that it was lost with all hands on board.

Hoosier hurried on board the boat, and followed Dick's instructions to the letter.

For the purpose of ascertaining the Board's powers in this connection the opinion of the Attorney General has been requested.

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Related Words

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.

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boarboard and batten