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crash boat

American  

noun

  1. a small, fast boat used in rescue operations, especially for airplane crashes.

Etymology

Origin of crash boat

An Americanism dating back to 1935–40

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.

Navy crash boat, renamed the Marlin, shoves off from Fort-de-France, Martinique.

From Time Magazine Archive

Vacationer Dwight Eisenhower, ensconced in a deck chair on the low stern of the Navy crash boat Queen Six, trolled for eight hours one day last week southwest of Newport.

From Time Magazine Archive

And off West Palm Beach, Fla. an Air Force crash boat pulled a pilot from the drink.

From Time Magazine Archive

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.