Sail Verb Meaning: Travel by Boat or Ship

Meaning 1：travel by boat or ship across water (sail)

sail 🔊

/seɪl/

When a boat or ship moves across water using wind or an engine, or when people travel on it.

Sailboat sailing on calm blue lake with full sails

travel by boat or ship across water 🔊

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/ˈtrævəl baɪ boʊt ɔːr ʃɪp əˈkrɒs ˈwɔːtər/

To move across a body of water in a boat or ship, whether powered by wind (sails) or an engine.

📁 Category：Transportation & Travel 🔖 Level：beginner

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

From Old English 'segel', related to Dutch 'zeil', meaning a cloth to catch wind.

💡 Mnemonic

Imagine a 'sail' as a big white sheet on a boat; you 'sail' when wind pushes it. 'Sail' sounds like 'seal', but seals swim, you sail.

📖 Example

We plan to sail across the lake this weekend if the weather is nice. 🔊 We plan to sail across the lake this weekend if the weather is nice.

🔗 Collocations

sail across – to travel across (a body of water) by boat

set sail – to begin a voyage by boat

sail into – to enter (a port or harbor) by boat

🔄 Synonyms

cruise (v.) – to travel by boat for pleasure, often without a specific destination

navigate (v.) – to plan and direct the course of a boat or ship

voyage (v.) – to make a long journey by sea

🚫 Antonyms

anchor (v.) – to stop a boat and fix it in place using an anchor

dock (v.) – to bring a boat into a dock and tie it up

stay in port (v. phrase) – to remain in a harbor without sailing

🌱 Derivatives

sailor (n.) – a person who works on or sails a boat

sailing (n./adj.) – the activity or sport of traveling in a boat with sails

sailable (adj.) – capable of being sailed on (of water) or sailed (of a boat)

📖 Cultural Story

The word 'sail' originates from Proto-Germanic *segla-, referring to fabric used for wind propulsion. It has been central to maritime language for centuries.