boat
- a vessel for transport by water, constructed to provide buoyancy by excluding water and shaped to give stability and permit propulsion.
- a small ship, generally for specialized use: a fishing boat.
- a small vessel carried for use by a large one, as a lifeboat: They lowered the boats for evacuation.
- a ship.
- a vessel of any size built for navigation on a river or other inland body of water.
- a serving dish resembling a boat: a gravy boat; a celery boat.
- Ecclesiastical. a container for holding incense before it is placed in the censer.
- to go in a boat: We boated down the Thames.
- to transport in a boat: They boated us across the bay.
- to remove (an oar) from the water and place athwartships.Compare ship1(def 10).
- in the same boat, in the same circumstances; faced with the same problems: The new recruits were all in the same boat.
- miss the boat, Informal.
- to fail to take advantage of an opportunity: He missed the boat when he applied too late to get into college.
- to miss the point of; fail to understand: I missed the boat on that explanation.
- rock the boat. rock2(def 17).
Origin of boat
boat
- a small vessel propelled by oars, paddle, sails, or motor for travelling, transporting goods, etc, esp one that can be carried aboard a larger vessel
- (not in technical use) another word for ship
- navy a submarine
- a container for gravy, sauce, etc
- a small boat-shaped container for incense, used in some Christian churches
- in the same boat sharing the same problems
- burn one's boats See burn 1 (def. 19)
- miss the boat to lose an opportunity
- push the boat out British informal to celebrate, esp lavishly and expensively
- rock the boat informal to cause a disturbance in the existing situation
- (intr) to travel or go in a boat, esp as a form of recreation
- (tr) to transport or carry in a boat
Word Origin
Word Origin and History for in the same boat
boat
n.
Old English bat "boat, ship, vessel," from Proto-Germanic *bait- (cf. Old Norse batr, Dutch boot, German Boot), possibly from PIE root *bheid- "to split" (see fissure), with the sense of making a boat by hollowing out a tree trunk; or it may be an extension of the name for some part of a ship. French bateau "boat" is from Old English or Norse. Spanish batel, Italian battello, Medieval Latin batellus likewise probably are from Germanic.
Idioms and Phrases with in the same boat
in the same boat
Also, all in the same boat. In a similar situation, in the same position. For example, Everyone's got too much work—we're all in the same boat. This expression alludes to the risks shared by passengers in a small boat at sea. [Mid-1800s]
boat
see burn one's bridges (boats); in the same boat; miss the boat; rock the boat.