Synonyms

set sail

Idioms

Also, make sail. Begin a voyage on water, as in Dad rented a yacht, and we're about to set sail for the Caribbean, or We'll make sail for the nearest port. These expressions, dating from the early 1500s, originally meant “put the sails in position to catch the wind,” and hence cause the vessel to move.

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.

The MV Hondius set sail from this spectacular Patagonian port, sandwiched between snow-capped mountains and the South Atlantic, on April 1.

From Barron's • May 12, 2026

Argentina's health ministry has said officials will test rodents in the city of Ushuaia, where the ship set sail from on 1 April.

From BBC • May 7, 2026

Meanwhile officials in Argentina said they planned to test rodents in the coastal city of Ushuaia, from where the ship had set sail on April 1.

From Barron's • May 7, 2026

Two other people died on board the ship, which set sail from Argentina a month ago.

From BBC • May 7, 2026

Gerion Lannister had set sail for Valyria when Tyrion was eighteen, intent on recovering the lost ancestral blade of House Lannister and any other treasures that might have survived the Doom.

From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023