oar
Americannoun
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a long shaft with a broad blade at one end, used as a lever for rowing or otherwise propelling or steering a boat.
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something resembling this or having a similar purpose.
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a person who rows; oarsman.
verb (used with object)
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to propel with or as if with oars; row.
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to traverse or make (one's way) by, or as if by, rowing.
verb (used without object)
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to row.
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to move or advance as if by rowing.
idioms
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rest on one's oars, to cease to make an effort; relax after exertion; stop working after success or completing a task.
Once he became president, he was content to rest on his oars.
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put in one's oar, to meddle; interfere.
He put in his oar and was told to mind his own business.
noun
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a long shaft of wood for propelling a boat by rowing, having a broad blade that is dipped into and pulled against the water. Oars were also used for steering certain kinds of ancient sailing boats
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short for oarsman
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to interfere or interrupt
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of oar
before 900; Middle English ore, Old English ār; cognate with Old Norse ār
Vocabulary lists containing oar
3-letter words, List 2
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Spelling Practice, Unit 8
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Spelling Practice 1, Unit 3
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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.
It was their influence that led him to first pick up an oar at Castle Dore Rowing Club.
From BBC • May 23, 2024
In California, a navigable water source is a body of water that is “capable of being navigated by oar or motor-propelled small craft,” so anywhere you could get into a boat and go 500 yards.
From Los Angeles Times • May 19, 2023
Old wooden skis and a racing oar frame the door to the music room.
From Seattle Times • May 1, 2023
The performer in front — actually Woods himself, with dancer Tamzin O’Garro behind — is wielding the cello bow as an oar.
From New York Times • Nov. 20, 2022
We clambered into it and Emma handed me an oar and we both started paddling, headed toward the lighthouse.
From "Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children" by Ransom Riggs
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
