houseboat

American

[hous-boht] / ˈhaʊsˌboʊt /

noun

a flat-bottomed, bargelike boat fitted for use as a floating dwelling but not for rough water.

verb (used without object)

to travel or live on a houseboat.

houseboat British

/ ˈhaʊsˌbəʊt /

noun

a stationary boat or barge used as a home

"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

Other Word Forms

houseboater noun

Etymology

Origin of houseboat

First recorded in 1780–90; house + boat

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.

Matt Gibson, 52, moors his sage-green houseboat, bedecked with plants, on the Regent's Canal near central London.

From Barron's • Feb. 11, 2026

Tributes have been paid to a "popular" powerboat driver who died after a collision with a stationary houseboat during an international competition.

From BBC • Jul. 25, 2025

Marcus stays on a houseboat, where he takes care of a cat that may or may not actually exist.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 30, 2024

The discovery was named Musankwa sanyatiensis after the houseboat "Musankwa."

From Science Daily • May 30, 2024

When it gets hot, I dive off the houseboat into the murky water, taking care not to drink it.

From "First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers" by Loung Ung

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023