ferry

American  

[fer-ee] / ˈfɛr i /

noun

plural

ferries

1. a commercial service with terminals and boats for transporting persons, automobiles, etc., across a river or other comparatively small body of water.

2. a ferryboat.

3. a service for flying airplanes over a particular route, especially the delivery of airplanes to an overseas purchaser or base of operations.

4. the legal right to ferry passengers, cargo, etc., and to charge for the service.

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verb (used with object)

ferried, ferrying

1. to carry or convey back and forth over a fixed route in a boat or plane.

2. to fly (an airplane) over a particular route, especially for delivery.

verb (used without object)

ferried, ferrying

1. to go in a ferry.

ferry British  

/ ˈfɛrɪ /

noun

1. Also called: ferryboat.  a vessel for transporting passengers and usually vehicles across a body of water, esp as a regular service

2. 1. such a service

   2. ( in combination )

      a ferryman

3. a legal right to charge for transporting passengers by boat

4. the act or method of delivering aircraft by flying them to their destination

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verb

1. to transport or go by ferry

2. to deliver (an aircraft) by flying it to its destination

3. (tr) to convey (passengers, goods, etc)

   the guests were ferried to the church in taxis

Other Word Forms

• unferried adjective

Etymology

Origin of ferry

before 1150; Middle English ferien, Old English ferian to carry; cognate with Old Norse ferja, Gothic farjan; akin to fare

Example Sentences

The run falls about 1,200 vertical feet below a slow, three-person lift that ferries expert skiers to some of Mammoth’s most adventurous terrain.

From Los Angeles Times

Others were not so well prepared and families with young children were ferried to rest centres set up in Lockerbie and Moffat.

From BBC

Wasn’t it a hop, skip, and a jump from selling Mother’s goods on the black market to ferrying around documents on her bicycle, to couriering medicines, to smuggling out people?

From Literature

Mr. Dovlo pushed me in its direction, and it turned out to be a thatched, open-air ferry station.

From Literature

It takes longer to ferry oil from the U.S. to India than from Russia to India.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• carry
• chauffeur
• lug
• send
• ship
• shuttle
• tote
• transport