Yacht Definition & Meaning

American

British

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Synonyms 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

"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

verb

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

"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

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

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

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

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

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.