speedboat

American

[speed-boht] / ˈspidˌboʊt /

noun

a motorboat designed for high speeds.

speedboat British

/ ˈspiːdˌbəʊt /

noun

a high-speed motorboat having either an inboard or outboard motor

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of speedboat

1910–15; speed ( def. ) + boat ( def. )

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.

A ragtag group took to the Straits of Florida on a speedboat, wanting to spark a rebellion.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 4, 2026

The chosen group of 30 boys filmed on mountain tops and in the jungle, mangroves, waterfalls and beaches on a remote island off Langkawi, which they travelled to by speedboat.

From BBC • Feb. 14, 2026

Lane Kiffin, by contrast, bailed on his players and now resembles a renegade pirate at the helm of a flashy speedboat — fast, loud, brash and obsessively searching for buried treasure.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 6, 2025

"A tanker of this size cannot be turned around in a matter of days, like a speedboat turning 180 degrees in the other direction. It takes time."

From Barron's • Nov. 26, 2025

As if on cue, something flashed on the eastern horizon - a light across the Sound, approaching fast like another speedboat.

From "Blood of Olympus" by Rick Riordan

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