yacht

American  

[yot] / yɒt /

noun

1. a vessel used for private cruising, racing, or other noncommercial purposes.

---

verb (used without object)

1. to sail, voyage, or race in a yacht.

yacht British  

/ jɒt /

noun

1. a vessel propelled by sail or power, used esp for pleasure cruising, racing, etc

2. short for sand yacht ice yacht

---

verb

1. (intr) to sail or cruise in a yacht

Other Word Forms

• superyacht noun
• yachty adjective

Etymology

Origin of yacht

1550–60; < early Dutch jaght, short for jaghtschip hunting ship, equivalent to Dutch jacht hunt (derivative of jagen to hunt) + schip ship ¹

Compare meaning

How does yacht compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• yacht vs. sailboat

Example Sentences

Shanahan, who runs a business that provides professional yacht services, said her clients had not expressed any fear of being in Mexico.

From Los Angeles Times

They have nice lives, they make a fortune, their companies are huge, they already own their yachts and whatever it is they want.

From The Wall Street Journal

He wants cold hard cash, plus a couple of private islands, planes and ultra-luxury yachts.

From Los Angeles Times

He recalled donning tuxedos and carrying toy guns pretending to be James Bond on a European yacht vacation and soaring over the Serengeti in a hot air balloon during an East African safari.

From Los Angeles Times

From tail-finned land yachts of the 1960s to hulking family haulers in the 1980s and then the 1990s bestseller Ford Taurus, driving for Americans meant driving a sedan.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• racer
• sailboat
• sloop