cruiser
Americannoun
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a person or thing that cruises.
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one of a class of warships of medium tonnage, designed for high speed and long cruising radius.
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a vessel, especially a power-driven one, intended for cruising.
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Also called timber cruiser. a person who estimates the value of the timber in a tract of forest.
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Slang. a prostitute who walks the street soliciting customers.
noun
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a high-speed, long-range warship of medium displacement, armed with medium calibre weapons or missiles
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Also called: cabin cruiser. a pleasure boat, esp one that is power-driven and has a cabin
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any person or thing that cruises
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boxing cruiserweight See light heavyweight
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of cruiser
1670–80; < Dutch kruiser, equivalent to kruis ( en ) to cruise + -er -er 1
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:
A California Highway Patrol cruiser was punctured by metal.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 16, 2026
Melissa Newman, a business professor who’s an avid cruiser, is starting to see some cracks in the industry she loves: Some cruise-goers, including repeat travelers, are saying cruising doesn’t feel special anymore.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 11, 2026
The warship's welcoming ceremony outside the naval base of Salamis included a copy of an ancient Athenian trireme and the Georgios Averof, a historic cruiser that fought in the Balkan Wars.
From Barron's ● Jan. 15, 2026
The retired admiral told me that the Navy’s most successful project in recent decades is the Aegis-class cruiser.
From Slate ● Dec. 23, 2025
Two officers entered the cruiser and prepared to head back to the station.
From "The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates" by Wes Moore
Baby boomers make up the majority of cruisers, and that cohort has continued to outspend other generations.
From Barron's ● May 6, 2026
Nestled in Whiterock Bay, Strangford Yacht Club is home to a fleet of racing boats, cruisers and dinghies.
From BBC ● Apr. 27, 2026
This turned into a situation where some cruisers stood to profit, similar to instances when airlines have more passengers than seats available and offer incentives to travelers to take a later flight.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 19, 2026
NASSAU, Bahamas—The 4,400 cruisers on Royal Caribbean’s Freedom of the Seas had plenty of options when the ship docked in the Bahamas Friday morning.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 11, 2026
The Japanese destroyed or damaged three navy cruisers, three destroyers, an anti-aircraft training ship, and one minelayer, leading our nation into World War II. One hundred eighty-eight US aircraft were destroyed.
From "Reaching for the Moon" by Katherine Johnson
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.
