carry
verb (used with object)
to take or support from one place to another; convey; transport.
carry
1 American
[kar-ee]
/ ˈkær i /
verb (used with object)
-
carries,
present (3rd person singular)
-
carried,
past participle, past
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carrying
present participle
-
to take or support from one place to another; convey; transport.
He carried her for a mile in his arms. This elevator cannot carry more than ten people.
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to wear, hold, or have around one.
He carries his knife in his pocket. He carries a cane.
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to contain or be capable of containing; hold.
The suitcase will carry enough clothes for a week.
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to serve as an agency or medium for the transmission of.
The wind carried the sound. He carried the message to me.
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to be the means of conveying or transporting (something or someone).
The wind carried the balloon out of sight.
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to be pregnant with.
His wife is carrying twins.
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to put ahead to a subsequent time, page, etc., or to a higher authority; continue or transfer.
to carry a case to a higher court; to carry a footnote to a new page.
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to bear the weight, burden, etc., of; sustain.
These piers once carried an arch.
- Synonyms:
- support
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to take (a leading or guiding part), as in singing; bear or sustain (a part or melody).
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to hold (the body, head, etc.) in a certain manner.
She carries her head high.
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to behave or comport (oneself ).
She carries herself with decorum.
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to take the initiative in (a contest).
The Giants carried the game to the Browns.
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to secure the adoption of (a motion or bill).
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to get a plurality or majority of electoral votes in (a district).
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to extend or continue in a given direction or to a certain point.
to carry the war into enemy territory.
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to bring, impart, hear, transmit, or communicate news, a message, etc.
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to lead or influence by emotional or intellectual appeal.
The actor carried his audience with him.
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to bear the major burden of (a group, performance, etc.) by superior talent, determination, etc..
The star carried the whole play.
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to serve as a conduit for.
This pipe carries water to the house.
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to have as an attribute, property, consequence, etc.; presume or entail.
Violation carries a penalty of five years in prison.
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to support or give validity to (a related claim, argument, etc.).
One decision carries another.
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Commerce.
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to keep on hand or in stock.
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to keep on the account books.
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to bear as a crop.
This land will not carry corn.
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to sustain or support.
Our grain supply will carry the cattle through the winter. This money will carry us for about a week.
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to be enrolled for or to undertake as an amount of work.
New students are advised not to carry more than 16 credits.
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Golf. to advance beyond or go by (an object or expanse) with one stroke.
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Ice Hockey. to cause (a puck) to move forward along the ice and in one's control by a series of light, short taps with the stick.
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Hunting. to retain and pursue (a scent).
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(in addition) to transfer (a number) from one denomination to the succeeding one.
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to have as a maximum working pressure.
This boiler carries 190 pounds per square inch.
verb (used without object)
-
carries,
present (3rd person singular)
-
carried,
past participle, past
-
carrying
present participle
-
to act as a bearer or conductor.
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to have or exert propelling force.
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to be transmitted, propelled, or sustained.
My voice carries farther than his.
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(of a horse) to bear the head in a particular manner while in action.
The horse carries well.
noun
-
carries
plural
-
range, as of a gun.
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Golf. the distance a stroked ball travels.
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land that separates navigable waters and over which a canoe or boat must be carried; portage.
-
a carrying.
verb phrase
-
carry forward
-
to make progress with.
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Bookkeeping. to transfer (an amount) to the next page, column, or book.
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Accounting. to apply (an unused credit or operating loss) to the net income of a succeeding period in order to reduce the tax for that period.
-
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carry out
-
to put into operation; execute.
He doesn't have the funds to carry out his design.
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to effect or accomplish; complete.
They carried out their plan without incident.
-
-
carry off
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to win (a prize, honor, etc.).
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to cause the death of.
The Black Plague in the Middle Ages carried off more than one-fourth of the population of Europe.
-
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carry away
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to influence greatly or unreasonably, especially emotionally; excite; transport.
The spectators were carried away by the appeal to their patriotism.
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Nautical. (of the wind or sea) to dislodge or send overboard.
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Nautical. (of a vessel) to lose (an object or objects) through breakage.
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Nautical. (of a rope or chain) to break under strain.
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carry through
-
to accomplish; complete.
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to support or help through a difficult situation.
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to continue or be prevalent in; persist.
a theme that carried through all his writing.
-
-
carry back to apply (an unused credit or operating loss) to the net income of a prior period in order to reduce the tax for that period.
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carry on
-
to manage; conduct.
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to continue without stopping.
Rescue operations were carried on in spite of the storm.
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to continue to live, work, etc., despite a setback or tragedy; persevere.
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Informal. to behave in an agitated, foolish, or indiscreet manner.
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to misbehave or be disruptive; act up.
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Nautical. to proceed under excessive sail for the weather conditions.
-
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carry over
-
to hold until a later time; postpone.
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to be left; remain.
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Bookkeeping. to transfer (an amount) to the next page, column, or book.
-
Accounting. to apply (an unused credit or operating loss) to the net income of a succeeding period in order to reduce the tax for that period.
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to extend from one activity or time to another.
He does not carry over his business ethics into his personal relationships.
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idioms
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carry a tune, to sing a melody accurately or on key.
-
carry the can. can.
-
carry too far, to exceed the limits of; go to excess with.
She is carrying her crusading too far.
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carry the day, to win the contest or be triumphant; prevail. The Republicans carried the day.
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carry it off, to succeed in an action, endeavor, or scheme.
-
carry all before one, to be highly successful.
In his academic and social life he carried all before him.
carry
British
/ ˈkærɪ /
verb
-
(also intr) to take or bear (something) from one place to another
to carry a baby in one's arms
-
to transfer for consideration; take
he carried his complaints to her superior
-
to have on one's person
he always carries a watch
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(also intr) to be transmitted or serve as a medium for transmitting
sound carries best over water
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to contain or be capable of containing
the jug carries water
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to bear or be able to bear the weight, pressure, or responsibility of
her efforts carry the whole production
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to have as an attribute or result
this crime carries a heavy penalty
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to bring or communicate
to carry news
-
(also intr) to be pregnant with (young)
she is carrying her third child
-
to bear (the head, body, etc) in a specified manner
she carried her head high
-
to conduct or bear (oneself) in a specified manner
she carried herself well in a difficult situation
-
to continue or extend
the war was carried into enemy territory
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to cause to move or go
desire for riches carried him to the city
-
to influence, esp by emotional appeal
his words carried the crowd
-
to secure the passage of (a bill, motion, etc)
-
to win (an election)
-
to obtain victory for (a candidate or measure) in an election
-
to win a plurality or majority of votes in (a district, legislative body, etc)
the candidate carried 40 states
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to capture
our troops carried the town
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(of communications media) to include as the content
this newspaper carries no book reviews
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Also (esp US): carry over. accounting to transfer (an item) to another account, esp to transfer to the following year's account instead of writing off against profit and loss
to carry a loss
-
maths to transfer (a number) from one column of figures to the next, as from units to tens in multiplication and addition
-
(of a shop, trader, etc) to keep in stock
to carry confectionery
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to support (a musical part or melody) against the other parts
-
to sustain (livestock)
this land will carry twelve ewes to the acre
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to maintain (livestock) in good health but without increasing their weight or obtaining any products from them
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(intr) (of a ball, projectile, etc) to travel through the air or reach a specified point
his first drive carried to the green
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sport golf (of a ball) to travel beyond
the drive carried the trees
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(intr) (of a gun) to have a range as specified
this rifle carries for 1200 yards
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to retain contact with and pursue (a line of scent)
-
(intr) (of ground) to be in such a condition that scent lies well upon it
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ice hockey to move (the puck) forwards, keeping it against the blade of the stick
-
informal to imbibe (alcoholic drink) without showing ill effects
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slang (intr) to have drugs on one's person
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to win unanimous support or approval for oneself
-
to be able to sing in tune
-
informal to take the responsibility for some misdemeanour, etc (on behalf of)
-
to win a contest or competition; succeed
noun
-
the act of carrying
-
a portion of land over which a boat must be portaged
-
the range of a firearm or its projectile
-
the distance travelled by a ball, etc, esp (in golf) the distance from where the ball is struck to where it first touches the ground
carry
More Idioms
Synonym Usage
Carry, convey, transport, transmit imply taking or sending something from one place to another. Carry means to take by means of the hands, a vehicle, etc.: to carry a book; The boat carried a heavy load. Convey means to take by means of a nonhuman carrier: The wheat was conveyed to market by train. However, news, information, etc., can be conveyed by a human carrier: The secretary conveyed the message. Transport means to carry or convey goods, now usually by vehicle or vessel: to transport milk to customers. Transmit implies sending or transferring messages or hereditary tendencies: to transmit a telegram.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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recarryverb (used with object)
-
undercarryverb (used with object)
-
carriableadjective
-
carryableadjective
-
half-carriedadjective
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uncarriedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
carrysimple
-
carriessimple
-
have carriedperfect
-
has carriedperfect
-
am carryingprogressive
-
are carryingprogressive
-
is carryingprogressive
-
have been carryingperfect progressive
-
has been carryingperfect progressive
Past
-
carriedsimple
-
had carriedperfect
-
was carryingprogressive
-
were carryingprogressive
-
had been carryingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of carry
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English carien, from Anglo-French carier, from Late Latin carricāre “to load a wagon,” apparently variant of carrūcāre (unrecorded), derivative of Latin carrūca “traveling carriage,” from Celtic; cf. car 1, charge
Explanation
When you carry something, you hold it and take it somewhere. When you live in a walk-up apartment, you have to carry bags of groceries up several flights of stairs. You carry armfuls of books home from the library, or carry your new puppy when she gets tired on a long walk. You might also carry friends in your car, or carry plenty of cash in your wallet. In any of these cases, you're transporting something. If you're ill and can spread germs to other people, a doctor might say that you carry an infectious disease. The words carry and car share a common Latin root, carrum, "two-wheeled chariot."
Vocabulary lists containing carry
Common Five-letter Words for Wordle, List 4
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Mother's Day Words: What Mothers Do
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"A Suitcase of Seaweed" and "Immigrants Today"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
High-quality bonds carry a correlation to the S&P 500 of roughly 0.24 — by far the lowest of any major asset class — compared with roughly 0.66 for both developed and emerging international equities.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 15, 2026
“It was left to me to carry on.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
The series shows otherwise and, she argues, is the richer for being filmed in the Zulu language: "English doesn't carry the same cultural richness that our languages do."
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
While the federal charges he pleaded guilty to carry up to life in prison, the judge could sentence him to less time.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
It wasn’t that they needed two operators, one to carry out a mission and one to be a backup.
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
According to Rolling Stone magazine the director, Adams, who grew up in Porthcawl, pitched the idea to Tarantino, external after they worked together on Adams' previous film Only What We Carry.
From BBC ● Jun. 25, 2026
“Pretend You’re Dead and I Carry You” alchemized those months of research, plus a decade of drafts, residencies at the Headland Center for the Arts and Hedgebrook, as well as notebooks upon notebooks.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 9, 2026
Nathan “Natie” Kirsh founded Restaurant Depot in 1976 as Jetro Cash & Carry, and built the company into a leading brand that dominates the restaurant-supply market.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 30, 2026
Leigh wasn't the only critic to compare Wuthering Heights to a Carry On film.
From BBC ● Feb. 10, 2026
Carry the creamers to the table in a “monkey bowl,” never in your hand.
From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich
He will make recommendations, based on his examination of the records and any interviews he carries out.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, or AMOC, is a vast network of ocean currents that carries warm water northward from the tropics.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 14, 2026
This is the second biggest category of retail spending after autos, so it carries a lot of weight.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026
The Strait of Hormuz normally carries roughly a fifth of the world’s oil and is the main export route for Gulf producers shipping crude to Asian markets.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
The music rises into the air with the wings of a nightingale and carries us forward, just when it seems we cannot take another step.
From "Across So Many Seas" by Ruth Behar
Following the incident, the estate was closed while inquiries were carried out.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
Fracking operations would be carried out on 16 existing oil wells over a five-year period, and company officials said the procedure would take about 14 days per year to complete.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
Specialists from the University's Materials Innovation Factory carried out additional analyses to confirm the results.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 14, 2026
This week, Kennedy carried that project further, promising the federal government’s first official definition of ultra-processed food.
From Salon ● Aug. 14, 2026
They looked so forlorn that I picked them up and carried them in my cap rather than leaving them for some passing skunk.
From "Woodsong" by Gary Paulsen
Once elevated to his new posts, Salisbury took charge of carrying out the second Trump administration’s agenda for HSI, personally issuing staffing directives, reassignments and promotions, current and former agency officials told ProPublica.
From Salon ● Aug. 15, 2026
Ukraine and Russia have both been deploying mothership drones carrying smaller first-person-view drones to expand their range.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
Rail services on a busy line in the South East are being cancelled this weekend after a train carrying 150 people derailed in East Sussex.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
Wearing bathing costumes and many carrying children, the tourists were moved to nearby beaches, while about 200 were taken to a ship waiting at sea, officials and public broadcaster ERT said.
From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026
Daisy was hobbling along on her old crutch and was carrying a broom.
From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls
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.
