sail 1 of 2

1
as in to boat
to travel on water in a vessel I can't sail when there's any breeze at all because I get seasick easily

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2
3
as in to hover
to rest or move along the surface of a liquid or in the air a leaf sailed by, carried by the breeze

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sail

2 of 2

noun

as in voyage
a journey over water in a vessel we went for a brief sail on the bay to relax

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of sail
Verb
The two ships will swap itineraries, with Prima sailing Breakaway's Southern Caribbean cruises and Breakaway sailing Prima's Western Caribbean cruises. Nathan Diller, USA Today, 7 July 2025 The eastern side brings you to the mouth of the canal, and often, tall ships, giant yachts and other interesting boats are sailing by. Moira McCarthy, Boston Herald, 6 July 2025
Noun
Advertisement Gayton seized Platt again and set sail from Jamaica, keeping him in shackles for months aboard his ship before transferring him to another Royal Navy frigate, which transferred him to a third naval ship headed to England. Time, 9 July 2025 In 1648, a group of English Puritans set sail from Bermuda to avoid religious persecution only to smack into Devil’s Backbone reef. Norma Meyer, Oc Register, 9 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for sail
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sail
Verb
  • For the Olympic Games Opening Ceremony, each nation was also boated down the river, making the Seine a focal point for Olympians and visitors.
    Angelica Stabile, FOXNews.com, 12 July 2025
  • The Chinese have forbidden any fishing or boating on the lake due to conservation commitments, but our guide informed us that occasionally North Korean soldiers will venture with a boat for fishing in the lake.
    Saleem H. Ali, Forbes.com, 9 July 2025
Verb
  • The death toll has rose to over 120 people killed since heavy rainfall overwhelmed the Guadalupe River and flowed through homes and summer camps in the early morning hours of July 4.
    Jay Stahl, USA Today, 12 July 2025
  • Both the Sai and the Kok rivers flow into the Mekong, as does the Ruak, where unsafe levels of arsenic have also been found.
    Michael Sullivan, NPR, 12 July 2025
Verb
  • Gas prices are hovering near their lowest summer level in four years as millions of people ready themselves to hit the roads over the Fourth of July holiday weekend.
    Max Zahn, ABC News, 3 July 2025
  • As the afternoon progresses, chances of rain drop from 36% to 15%, and in the evening, hover around 10% with a low temperature of 66 degrees.
    Audrey Gibbs, The Tennessean, 2 July 2025
Noun
  • The voyage had been long-planned with her spouse of many decades.
    Guy Trebay, Travel + Leisure, 15 July 2025
  • There was no Deep Space Network to track and command the spacecraft, and navigating to Venus was less challenging than the voyage to Mars, which was almost twice as long — some 325 million miles (523 million km).
    Rod Pyle, Space.com, 14 July 2025
Verb
  • For the 2025 race, Sweet will fly nine helicopters in and out of the track all day, with each helicopter ferrying five or six people.
    Alysa Guffey, IndyStar, 2 July 2025
  • Buggies—there are 67 of them available to guests—ferried me up and down the gentle hills, which added a sense of adventure to this green and sprawling place.
    Marcia DeSanctis, Travel + Leisure, 30 June 2025
Verb
  • The fact that it's made in Rome made wearing it while cruising the Mediterranean feel even more special.
    Alexis Benveniste, Travel + Leisure, 14 July 2025
  • Between acts, videos showed the girls stuck in the desert or cruising down a highway, and at one point, Rosé’s classic car floated across neon Las Vegas signs.
    Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 13 July 2025
Verb
  • Following that, Smith, 26 at the time, was assigned to the USS Carl Vinson — a massive aircraft carrier that doubles as a floating city.
    Jordan Greene, People.com, 11 July 2025
  • Use floating row covers over seedlings and susceptible crops such as eggplants, which can be decimated by flea beetles.
    Arricca Elin SanSone, Southern Living, 11 July 2025
Verb
  • Sci-fi speedboats gliding above the water, backed by a rotating cast of celebrities.
    Kanzah Maktoum, Forbes.com, 7 July 2025
  • But Ontario International Airport came in at No. 15, Hollywood Burbank Airport is at 14, John Wayne Airport landed at No. 12, and Long Beach Airport glided in at No. 2.
    Jim Radcliffe, Oc Register, 27 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Sail.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sail. Accessed 20 Jul. 2025.

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