carry-on

[ kar-ee-on, -awn ]

/ ˈkær iˌɒn, -ˌɔn /

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See synonyms for carry-on on Thesaurus.com

adjective

of a size and shape suitable for being carried onto and stowed in the passenger compartment of an airplane: carry-on luggage.

noun

a piece of carry-on luggage.

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Origin of carry-on

First recorded in 1950–55; adj., noun use of verb phrase carry on

Words nearby carry-on

carrying charge, carrying-on, carrying place, carry light, carry off, carry-on, carry-out, carry-over, carry permit, carry the ball, carry the can

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use carry-on in a sentence

Just the hard-on before you shoot unarmed members of the public.
'Babylon' Review: The Dumb Lives of Trigger-Happy Cops|Melissa Leon|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Three on-the-record stories from a family: a mother and her daughters who came from Phoenix.
I Tried to Warn You About Sleazy Billionaire Jeffrey Epstein in 2003|Vicky Ward|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
You just travel light with carry-on luggage, go to cities that you love, and get to hang out with all your friends.
Coffee Talk with Fred Armisen: On ‘Portlandia,’ Meeting Obama, and Taylor Swift’s Greatness|Marlow Stern|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
It was a brick wall that we turned into the on-ramp of a highway.
Coffee Talk with Fred Armisen: On ‘Portlandia,’ Meeting Obama, and Taylor Swift’s Greatness|Marlow Stern|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST

Could the (thus far) timid trembling give way to a full-on, grand mal seizure?
26 Earthquakes Later, Fracking’s Smoking Gun Is in Texas|James Joiner|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The occasion should be seized also to increase the balances of depositors who carry unprofitable accounts.
Readings in Money and Banking|Chester Arthur Phillips
They will carry out the dictum of Carlyle that the modern university is a university of books.
The Salvaging Of Civilisation|H. G. (Herbert George) Wells
It was little better than coal dust, and would not carry a ball fifty paces to kill or wound.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
The text of the amendments designed to carry out these recommendations will be submitted by the Board at an early date.
Readings in Money and Banking|Chester Arthur Phillips
The Professor, passing benevolently on, was glad he had now enough money to carry out his projects.
Uncanny Tales|Various

British Dictionary definitions for carry-on

carry on

verb (adverb)

(intr) to continue or perseverewe must carry on in spite of our difficulties

(tr) to manage or conductto carry on a business

(intr often foll by with) informal to have an affair

(intr) informal to cause a fuss or commotion

noun carry-on

informal, mainly British a fuss or commotion

adjective carry-on

(of luggage) to be taken inside an aircraft by hand personally by a passenger

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with carry-on

carry on

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]