maiden voyage

American  

noun

1. the first voyage of a ship after its acceptance by the owners from the builders.

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maiden voyage British  

noun

1. nautical the first voyage of a vessel

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maiden voyage Idioms  

1. The first experience, as in This tennis tournament is my maiden voyage in statewide competition. This term, originally meaning the first voyage of a ship, was first recorded in 1901, but the use of maiden to signify “the first time” dates from the mid-1500s.

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Etymology

Origin of maiden voyage

First recorded in 1900–05

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

maiden voyage

She knows what — or should I say who? — really went down on that disastrous maiden voyage.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 1, 2026

When Titanic departed on her doomed maiden voyage in April 1912 she was the largest, most luxurious and most technically advanced ship ever to sail the seas.

From BBC ● Mar. 31, 2026

But the company delayed its maiden voyage to prevent a catastrophic launch that CEO Peter Beck said would have been a “heartbreak.”

From MarketWatch ● Feb. 26, 2026

Days before the Champagne bottle was broken over the bow for its maiden voyage last week, I boarded the ship to watch the final preparations.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 23, 2025

It had been Uncle Cliff's dream to be on the maiden voyage of the Titanic.

From "I Survived the Sinking of the Titanic, 1912" by Lauren Tarshis