Viking

American  

[vahy-king] / ˈvaɪ kɪŋ /

noun

(sometimes lowercase)

• Vikings
  plural

1. any of the Scandinavian pirates who plundered the coasts of Europe from the 8th to 10th centuries.

2. a sea-roving bandit; pirate.

3. a Scandinavian.

4. U.S. Aerospace. one of a series of space probes that obtained scientific information about Mars.

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Viking British  

/ ˈvaɪkɪŋ /

noun

1. Also called: Norseman.   Northman.  any of the Danes, Norwegians, and Swedes who raided by sea most of N and W Europe from the 8th to the 11th centuries, later often settling, as in parts of Britain

2. any sea rover, plunderer, or pirate

3. either of two unmanned American spacecraft that reached Mars in 1976

4. (modifier) of, relating to, or characteristic of a Viking or Vikings

   a Viking ship

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• Vikings
  plural

Etymology

Origin of Viking

1800–10; < Scandinavian; compare Old Norse vīkingr; compare Old English wīcing pirate; etymology disputed

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Viking Vikings

Further south, in County Waterford, David Dennison started his Viking Winery in 2009, planting 30 vines of rondo.

From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026

A group of people were gathered around a large dining table beneath a massive chandelier of antler, a tableau that evoked some kind of Viking summit.

From Salon ● Aug. 9, 2026

Given they could have faced Viking Stavanger, Celje, Ararat-Armenia, Kairat Almaty, Levski Sofia, AGF Aarhus or Sabah instead, it is probably the toughest draw Celtic could have been given.

From BBC ● Aug. 3, 2026

Viking said all its guests were transferred safely ashore.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026

Because of communication and temperature constraints, Viking could not land at high Martian latitudes.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan

Hunting seabirds on Sula Sgeir goes back to the time of the Vikings, according to historian Donald S Murray, author of the book The Guga Hunters.

From BBC ● Aug. 3, 2026

Vikings weren’t just “simple, uncivilized, barbaric hordes,” says historian after a huge 1,000-year-old textile production site was discovered.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 24, 2026

He once made such a ridiculous overtime catch against the Minnesota Vikings that legendary broadcaster Al Michaels couldn’t believe his eyes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 20, 2026

He didn’t have to deal with the Vikings: Their first attack on England was far in the north and only three years before Offa’s death.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 21, 2026

The Lamar Vikings hadn’t wilted at all under the hot sun of Odessa.

From "Friday Night Lights: A Town, A Team, And A Dream" by H.G. Bissinger