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definitions

boating

[boh-ting]
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noun

the use of boats, especially for pleasure: He enjoyed boating and swimming.

adjective

of or relating to boats: boating clothes.

Origin of boating

First recorded in 1600–10; boat + -ing1, -ing2

boat

[boht]

noun

a vessel for transport by water, constructed to provide buoyancy by excluding water and shaped to give stability and permit propulsion.
a small ship, generally for specialized use: a fishing boat.
a small vessel carried for use by a large one, as a lifeboat: They lowered the boats for evacuation.
a ship.
a vessel of any size built for navigation on a river or other inland body of water.
a serving dish resembling a boat: a gravy boat; a celery boat.
Ecclesiastical. a container for holding incense before it is placed in the censer.

verb (used without object)

to go in a boat: We boated down the Thames.

verb (used with object)

to transport in a boat: They boated us across the bay.
to remove (an oar) from the water and place athwartships.Compare ship1(def 10).

Idioms

    in the same boat, in the same circumstances; faced with the same problems: The new recruits were all in the same boat.
    miss the boat, Informal.
    1. to fail to take advantage of an opportunity: He missed the boat when he applied too late to get into college.
    2. to miss the point of; fail to understand: I missed the boat on that explanation.
    rock the boat. rock2(def 17).

Origin of boat

before 900; Middle English boot (noun), Old English bāt; cognate with Old Norse beit
Related formsboat·a·ble, adjectiveboat·less, adjective
Can be confusedbarge boat canoe cruise ship sailboat ship yacht
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for boating

rowing, sailing, canoeing, drifting, yachting

Examples from the Web for boating

Contemporary Examples of boating

Historical Examples of boating

British Dictionary definitions for boating

boating

noun

the practice of rowing, sailing, or cruising in boats as a form of recreation

boat

noun

a small vessel propelled by oars, paddle, sails, or motor for travelling, transporting goods, etc, esp one that can be carried aboard a larger vessel
(not in technical use) another word for ship
navy a submarine
a container for gravy, sauce, etc
a small boat-shaped container for incense, used in some Christian churches
in the same boat sharing the same problems
burn one's boats See burn 1 (def. 19)
miss the boat to lose an opportunity
push the boat out British informal to celebrate, esp lavishly and expensively
rock the boat informal to cause a disturbance in the existing situation

verb

(intr) to travel or go in a boat, esp as a form of recreation
(tr) to transport or carry in a boat

Word Origin for boat

Old English bāt; related to Old Norse beit 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 boating

boat

n.

Old English bat "boat, ship, vessel," from Proto-Germanic *bait- (cf. Old Norse batr, Dutch boot, German Boot), possibly from PIE root *bheid- "to split" (see fissure), with the sense of making a boat by hollowing out a tree trunk; or it may be an extension of the name for some part of a ship. French bateau "boat" is from Old English or Norse. Spanish batel, Italian battello, Medieval Latin batellus likewise probably are from Germanic.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Idioms and Phrases with boating

boat

see burn one's bridges (boats); in the same boat; miss the boat; rock the boat.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.