onboard
Americanadjective
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provided, occurring, etc., on a vehicle.
among the ship's many onboard services.
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installed and functional within a vehicle or electronic device.
onboard computers for aircraft.
verb (used with object)
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to assist and support (a new employee) in developing the skills, knowledge, attitudes, etc., needed to do their job.
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to interact and exchange information with (a new customer) so as to ensure customer satisfaction, maximize company revenue, etc..
Part of onboarding new clients involves setting expectations and timelines.
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to digitize and upload customer data collected offline, typically to improve the results of personalized data-driven marketing.
The data we onboarded matched existing data online, providing us with better insight into the individual’s purchasing habits.
Etymology
Origin of onboard
First recorded in 1965–70; adjective use of adverb phrase on board
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.
Alaska also plans to replace Hawaiian Airlines’s retiring Boeing 717 fleet with Hawaiian-branded Boeing 737-800 aircraft, with an enhanced onboard experience and Honolulu-based pilots and flight attendants.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
China’s battery titans, including CATL, control vital patents on technologies such as sodium-ion battery chemistry, considered by many the next generation in onboard energy storage.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 11, 2026
The Traitors star was 23 years old and travelling the world onboard a Christian evangelical missionary ship when he came out to his fellow church members.
From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026
The RMT union said it had received reports that passengers and onboard train staff have sustained what it described as "serious injuries".
From BBC ● Jun. 19, 2026
White turned the wagon around and again headed south, his family and all of his servants safely onboard.
From "The Great Fire" by Jim Murphy
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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.