dinghy

[ding-gee]

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noun, plural din·ghies.

any small boat designed as a tender or lifeboat, especially a small ship's boat, rowed, sailed, or driven by a motor.

a boat used by warships, having four single-banked oars and a spritsail.

any of various rowing or sailing boats used in sheltered waters along the Indian coasts to transport passengers and freight.

an inflatable life raft.

Origin of dinghy

1785–95; < Bengali diṅgi, Hindi ḍiṅgī, diminutive of ḍiṅgā boat

Can be confuseddinghy dingy

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for dinghy

skiff, lifeboat, rowboat

Examples from the Web for dinghy

Contemporary Examples of dinghy

First, as companies go, Carnival is more like an aircraft carrier than a dinghy.
Floating Petri Dish Aside, Triumph Won’t Sink Carnival
Daniel Gross
February 15, 2013
Officials said they believed Wood slipped off the yacht when she went on deck to reattach a dinghy that came loose.
L.A. Sheriff Reopens Natalie Wood Drowning Probe, Citing New Information
Christine Pelisek
November 18, 2011

Historical Examples of dinghy

A man in the stern of the dinghy groaned, and slumped down into the bottom.
The Cruise of the Dry Dock
T. S. Stribling
In the uproar forward, Madden heard the cries: "Th' dinghy's swamped!"
The Cruise of the Dry Dock
T. S. Stribling
Madden followed, trusting not to hit the dinghy and kill himself.
The Cruise of the Dry Dock
T. S. Stribling
Greer moved instantly to the rope ladder where the dinghy was tied.
The Cruise of the Dry Dock
T. S. Stribling
Then somebody who had a dinghy that he did not want asked her if she would like to have a boat.
The Christian
Hall Caine

British Dictionary definitions for dinghy

dinghy

noun plural -ghies

any small boat, powered by sail, oars, or outboard motorAlso (esp formerly): dingy, dingey

verb plural -gies, -gying or -gied

(tr) British slang to ignore (a person) or avoid (an event)

Word Origin for dinghy

C19: from Hindi or Bengali dingi a little boat, from dingā boat

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

Word Origin and History for dinghy

1810, from Hindi dingi "small boat," perhaps from Sanskrit drona-m "wooden trough," related to dru-s "wood, tree" (see tree (n.)). The spelling with -h- is to indicate a hard -g-.