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• portage
  portage

  noun

  the act of carrying; carriage.
• Portage
  Portage

  noun

  a city in SW Michigan.

portage

¹ American  

[pawr-tij, pohr-, pawr-tahzh] / ˈpɔr tɪdʒ, ˈpoʊr-, pɔrˈtɑʒ /

noun

1. the act of carrying; carriage.

2. the carrying of boats, goods, etc., overland from one navigable water to another.

3. the route over which this is done.

4. the cost of carriage.

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verb (used without object)

portages, present (3rd person singular) portaged, past participle, past portaging present participle

1. to make a portage.

   On this stretch of the river, we have to portage for a mile.

verb (used with object)

portages, present (3rd person singular) portaged, past participle, past portaging present participle

1. to carry (something) over a portage; make a portage with.

   We portaged our canoe around the rapids.

Portage ² American  

[pawr-tij, pohr-] / ˈpɔr tɪdʒ, ˈpoʊr- /

noun

1. a city in SW Michigan.

2. a town in NW Indiana.

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portage British  

/ pɔrtaʒ, ˈpɔːtɪdʒ /

noun

1. the act of carrying; transport

2. the cost of carrying or transporting

3. the act or process of transporting boats, supplies, etc, overland between navigable waterways

4. the route overland used for such transport

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verb

1. to transport (boats, supplies, etc) overland between navigable waterways

Other Word Forms

Conjugated Forms

Present

• have portaged
  perfect
• has portaged
  perfect 3rd person singular
• has been portaging
  perfect progressive 3rd person singular
• am portaging
  progressive 1st person singular
• are portaging
  progressive
• have been portaging
  perfect progressive
• is portaging
  progressive 3rd person singular
• portaging
  participle
• portages
  singular 3rd person

Past

• had portaged
  perfect
• was portaging
  progressive singular
• had been portaging
  perfect progressive
• portaged
  simple
• were portaging
  progressive plural
• portaged
  participle

Future

• will portage
  simple
• will have portaged
  perfect
• will be portaging
  progressive
• will have been portaging
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of portage

1375–1425; late Middle English < Middle French; see port ⁵, -age

Explanation

Portage is a payment, usually to the captain or owner of a boat, for carrying cargo. A portage is also a bridge between two waterways. A business that sells goods to many parts of the world will probably pay portage at some point: a fee to a boat for carrying cargo. This is a bit of an old-fashioned word, and it mainly applies to boats (which you can remember from the word port: a place where boats dock). Also, a portage is a bridge-like track built on land that links waterways such as rivers. The purpose of that portage is also to transport goods.

Example Sentences

Yates said he came up with the idea of a marathon portage to raise awareness about the lack of water in this part of the river, and invited several friends and acquaintances to join him.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 6, 2025

This was an important historical spot for the Coast Salish peoples as a canoe portage between Lake Washington and Lake Union, before the Montlake Cut was dug to unite the two water bodies.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 3, 2023

If you don’t need quite as much power and portage, Satechi sells a 66W three USB-C port charger for $55.

From The Verge • Jan. 7, 2022

For most of the trip thereafter, the crew of Civil War veterans, trappers and frontiersmen would portage the major rapids.

From Washington Times • Apr. 17, 2021

Molly hasn’t told Jack about the portage project.

From "Orphan Train" by Christina Baker Kline

Related Words

• bear
• bring
• ferry
• give
• haul
• hoist
• import
• lift
• lug
• move
• pack
• remove
• take
• tote
• transfer
• transmit