steerageway

American

[steer-ij-wey] / ˈstɪər ɪdʒˌweɪ /

noun

Nautical.

sufficient speed to permit a vessel to be maneuvered.

steerageway British

/ ˈstɪərɪdʒˌweɪ /

noun

nautical enough forward movement to allow a vessel to be steered

"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 steerageway

First recorded in 1710–20; steerage + way ¹

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.

I ordered that we slow to bare steerageway and eased back into the channel.

From Time Magazine Archive

What I do is back off the throttle, point my bow into the wind and then hold steerageway until the blow passes.

From Time Magazine Archive

Despite Harry Truman's hasty efforts at damage control, the Fair Deal had all but lost steerageway, and Truman knew it.

From Time Magazine Archive

Step 1 Approach the slip downwind as slowly as possible to maintain steerageway and keep the boat relatively parallel to the stream.

From Time Magazine Archive

They were towed beside the other under bare steerageway.

From Boy Scouts in the North Sea The Mystery of a Sub by Ralphson, G. Harvey (George Harvey)

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