carry-on
adjective
of a size and shape suitable for being carried onto and stowed in the passenger compartment of an airplane.
carry-on
American
[kar-ee-on, -awn]
/ ˈkær iˌɒn, -ˌɔn /
adjective
noun
-
carry-ons
plural
carry on
British
verb
-
(intr) to continue or persevere
we must carry on in spite of our difficulties
-
(tr) to manage or conduct
to carry on a business
-
informal to have an affair
-
informal (intr) to cause a fuss or commotion
noun
adjective
carry on
Idioms
-
Maintain, conduct, as in The villagers carried on a thriving trade , or They carried on a torrid love affair . [c. 1600]
-
Continue or progress, persevere, as in I'm sure you can carry on without me . [Mid-1600s]
-
Behave in an excited, improper, or silly manner, as in They laughed and sang and carried on rather noisily . [Early 1800s]
-
Flirt, engage in an illicit love affair, as in She accused her friend of carrying on with her husband . [Early 1900s]
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of carry-on
First recorded in 1950–55; adj., noun use of verb phrase carry on
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:
Part of the defensiveness, no doubt, is about Rupar’s undoubted ability to make images of the enormous carry-on bag that Harp hauls around go viral.
From Salon ● Sep. 16, 2026
Jeers to airlines who browbeat passengers into checking their carry-on bags at the gate, with agents threatening a possible delayed departure if enough travelers don’t give up their bags.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
Lithium batteries must be stowed in carry-on baggage only, the US regulator says.
From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026
Some are offsetting costs by avoiding baggage fees, with 21% of respondents saying they switched to airlines that include baggage in fares and 29% opting to only bring a carry-on to avoid bag fees.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 12, 2026
She’s holding my mother’s carry-on that I’d left by the front door.
From "American Street" by Ibi Zoboi
Nvidia shares rise again after hitting a record high on Monday, while Nike drops as investors carry on fretting about its weak guidance.
From Barron's ● Oct. 6, 2026
Pastushenko says she finds Ukrainians’ ability to carry on both remarkable and disturbing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026
The singer, who shares two young sons with his wife, ended the video by saying he intended to carry on working, despite the diagnosis.
From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026
Now they are trying to carry on without Wyatt.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026
We carry on thru the night, the sky falling slowly past us, our words stopping a little as dinner wears off and tiredness takes hold again.
From "The Knife of Never Letting Go" by Patrick Ness
Ryanair has done this by posting extremely low base fares and charging for everything it can—including checked bags, all but the smallest carry-ons, seat selection, and food and drinks.
From Barron's ● May 8, 2026
Spirit offered uber-low, unbundled fares, charging more for carry-ons and picking a seat in advance of boarding.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 23, 2026
It’s probably just a matter of time until the other big players strip out carry-ons, as United has already done.
From Slate ● Oct. 9, 2025
It’s watching what people have tucked into their carry-ons: the foods that reveal where they’ve been or where they’re going.
From Salon ● Dec. 24, 2024
He eyed the passengers moving down the aisle with mild disinterest, but only to make sure they didn’t hit his shoulder with their purses and carry-ons as they passed.
From "Scythe" by Neal Shusterman
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.
