jolly boat

American  

noun

1. a light boat carried at the stern of a sailing vessel.

2. a small pleasure sailboat for use in sheltered waters.

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jolly boat British  

noun

1. a small boat used as a utility tender for a vessel

2. a small sailing boat used for pleasure

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Etymology

Origin of jolly boat

1720–30; jolly < Danish jolle yawl ¹

Example Sentences

“Who brought ye! it was either the gig or the jolly boat; but I wasn’t on deck at the time, so I can’t upon my oath say exactly which.”

From Newton Forster The Merchant Service by Marryat, Frederick

We saw the huge form of the lion contending with the 184 waves; attracted by the voices of men he was making every effort to reach the jolly boat.

From Hair Breadth Escapes Perilous incidents in the lives of sailors and travelers in Japan, Cuba, East Indies, etc., etc. by Arthur, T. S. (Timothy Shay)

At the time the vessel was wrecked, she had four boats, the longboat, two cutters, and a dinghy or small jolly boat.

From Discoveries in Australia, Volume 1. With an Account of the Coasts and Rivers Explored and Surveyed During The Voyage of H.M.S. Beagle, in the Years 1837-38-39-40-41-42-43. By Command of the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty. Also a Narrative Of Captain Owen Stanley's Visits to the Islands in the Arafura Sea. by Stokes, John Lort

With this object in view, Lieutenant Thomas pushed off in the jolly boat, accompanied by the French fishermen's small boat which had come to the assistance of the Grappler's crew.

From Narratives of Shipwrecks of the Royal Navy; between 1793 and 1849 by Gilly, William O. S.

I know of a jolly boat as would just do.”

From Quicksilver The Boy With No Skid To His Wheel by Dadd, Frank