ferry
Americannoun
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a commercial service with terminals and boats for transporting persons, automobiles, etc., across a river or other comparatively small body of water.
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a ferryboat.
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a service for flying airplanes over a particular route, especially the delivery of airplanes to an overseas purchaser or base of operations.
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the legal right to ferry passengers, cargo, etc., and to charge for the service.
verb (used with object)
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to carry or convey back and forth over a fixed route in a boat or plane.
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to fly (an airplane) over a particular route, especially for delivery.
verb (used without object)
noun
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Also called: ferryboat. a vessel for transporting passengers and usually vehicles across a body of water, esp as a regular service
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such a service
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( in combination )
a ferryman
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a legal right to charge for transporting passengers by boat
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the act or method of delivering aircraft by flying them to their destination
verb
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to transport or go by ferry
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to deliver (an aircraft) by flying it to its destination
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(tr) to convey (passengers, goods, etc)
the guests were ferried to the church in taxis
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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ferrysimple
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ferriessimple
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have ferriedperfect
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has ferriedperfect
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am ferryingprogressive
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are ferryingprogressive
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is ferryingprogressive
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have been ferryingperfect progressive
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has been ferryingperfect progressive
Past
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ferriedsimple
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had ferriedperfect
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was ferryingprogressive
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were ferryingprogressive
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had been ferryingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of ferry
before 1150; Middle English ferien, Old English ferian to carry; cognate with Old Norse ferja, Gothic farjan; akin to fare
Explanation
A ferry is a boat that carries people, cars, and cargo back and forth across a body of water. The Staten Island Ferry ferries commuters from Manhattan to Staten Island every ten minutes during rush hour. To ferry means to transport by ferry, or to transport in other ferry-like ways, i.e., multiple short trips. If you have an ice-skating birthday party, your dad might ferry a few van loads of kids back to your house afterward, for pizza and cake.
Vocabulary lists containing ferry
Greetings, World Traveler! — List 2
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Drowned City: Hurricane Katrina & New Orleans
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for September 17–September 23, 2022
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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:
But spending time around that ferry has made me wonder if modern life has undersold inconvenience.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
Which brings me back to that ridiculously inconvenient ferry and what I call the friction theory of friendship.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
A passenger ferry called SKS One and a bulk carrier came under attack in Kerch port, again with images posted on social media.
From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026
The edifice sits on a public transport corridor used to ferry World Cup soccer fans from Manhattan to MetLife stadium in New Jersey, but was not active Tuesday in the absence of any matches there.
From Barron's ● Jul. 7, 2026
Several of the shrews dug lines out of their packs and fished successfully, amassing quite a tidy little catch before the ferry nosed into the opposite bank with a gentle bump.
From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques
Two more tunnels to the islands of Whalsay and Bressay could follow under the plans, which council leaders say would be cheaper than building new ferries and replacing harbours.
From BBC ● Jun. 29, 2026
Down by her green toes, Melanie Griffith’s Staten Island secretary Tess McGill ferries to Manhattan to type memos for important men.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 29, 2026
He was gazing at Nantucket Harbor, where ferries were turning toward the mainland.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 27, 2026
So passengers must reach ocean-going ferries by smaller tenders.
From Barron's ● May 18, 2026
Hundreds of clippers, schooners, sloops, barges, ferries, and steamboats raised and lowered their flags to honor the Arctic heroes.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
In December, Air Force officials announced a B-52 Stratofortress was ferried from Boeing’s San Antonio facility to Edwards Air Force Base after it was equipped with a new radar system.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 16, 2026
Voting took place across the tiny Mediterranean island nation on Saturday, and ballots were ferried overnight to the Counting Hall in Naxxar, where counting begins on Sunday morning.
From Barron's ● May 31, 2026
It ferried about 2 million barrels of crude across the Indian and Pacific oceans in a six-week journey.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 11, 2026
The ship has not docked directly in Tenerife - instead it is anchored out at sea and passengers are being ferried to Granadilla port, well away from residential areas.
From BBC ● May 11, 2026
Nathaniel grasped my hand and we watched as the gold sphere ferried Monsieur Blanchard and his little black dog away on the wind.
From "Fever 1793" by Laurie Halse Anderson
The father-of-four is constantly ferrying the kids - aged between seven and 13 - to endless activities including taekwondo, swimming and drumming, as well helping them figure out their homework.
From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026
US helicopters have been ferrying in aid and US Marines have used a landing craft to deliver supplies from the USS Fort Lauderdale, an amphibious transport dock ship docked at La Guaira.
From Barron's ● Jun. 29, 2026
Watch how aging tankers are ferrying sanctioned oil to China—evading U.S. enforcement through a web of deceptive tactics.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 30, 2026
Luiz, a French cab driver ferrying festivalgoers around Cannes, does good impersonations of both a Long Island accent and a Southern drawl, said he loves talking with Americans.
From Salon ● May 22, 2026
So the whales pushed off and started ferrying the humans to shore.
From "The Wild Robot Protects" by Peter Brown
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.
