board

noun

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\ ˈbȯrd

Definition of board

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : a piece of sawed lumber of little thickness and a length greatly exceeding its width nailed boards over the windows

2a : a surface, frame, or device for posting notices Pin the photo to the board.

b : blackboard wrote the assignment on the board

c : a flat usually rectangular piece of material (such as wood) designed for a special purpose: such as

(1) : surfboard

(2) : skateboard … Tony Hawk has just legitimized the youthful rebellion they'd abandoned along with their boards.— Sean Pamphilon

(3) : springboard sense 1 Do a backflip off the board.

(4) boards plural : skis a new pair of boards

d basketball : backboard sense 1 a rebound off the boards also : a rebound in basketball averaging 7.8 boards per game

e : switchboard

3a(1) : a group of persons having managerial, supervisory, investigatory, or advisory powers She is on the bank's board of directors. board of examiners a board member

(2) : an examination given by an examining board —often used in plural pass the medical boards

b : league, association local board of realtors

c : daily meals especially when furnished for pay paid for her room and board

d : a table spread with a meal offered to help clear the board

e : a table at which a council or magistrates sit sat at the council board

f card games

(1) : the exposed hands of all the players in a stud poker game

(2) : an exposed dummy (see dummy entry 1 sense 2a) hand in bridge

g archaic : table sense 1a

4 electronics : a sheet of insulating material carrying circuit elements and terminals so that it can be inserted in an electronic apparatus (such as a computer)

5 boards plural, ice hockey : the low wall enclosing a hockey rink

6 computers : message board sense 2 Add a link to the board.

7a : cardboard

b : the stiff foundation piece for the side of a book cover

8 nautical : the side of a ship

9 boards plural, theater : stage sense 2a(2) one of the best actors that ever trod the boards

10 finance : a securities or commodities exchange (see exchange entry 1 sense 5a)

11 obsolete : border, edge

across the board

: so as to include or affect all classes or categories cut spending across the board also : in all areas or respects considered an average player across the board

on board

1 : aboard

2 : in support of a particular objective needed to get more senators on board for the bill to pass

board

verb

boarded; boarding; boards

Definition of board (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

1a : to go aboard (something, such as a ship, train, airplane, or bus) boarded a bus to Chicago

b : to put aboard an airliner boarding passengers

2 : to cover or seal off with a long, thin, and often narrow piece of sawed lumber : to cover or seal off with boards (see board entry 1 sense 1) —usually used with up board up a windowboard up a house

3 : to provide with regular meals and often also lodging usually for compensation supplemented her income by boarding college students

4 ice hockey : to check (a player) into the low wooden wall enclosing a hockey rink : to check (a player) into the boards (see board entry 1 sense 5)

5 archaic : to come up against or alongside (a ship) usually to attack

6 archaic : accost, address boarded me with some light remark— W. A. White

intransitive verb

1 : to receive meals or lodging bachelors who board at the inn specifically : to live at a boarding school

2 informal : to ride a skateboard, snowboard, etc. At 12, Danny joined his 16-year-old brother … on the slopes, boarding every day after school.— Scott DeSimon

3a : to get into or onto a means of transportation (such as an airplane, bus, ship, etc.) A bit late, we hurried to the gate just in time to board.— Ellen Creager

b : to put or allow passengers into or onto such a means of transportation … before my plane boarded I wandered into a duty-free shop to pick up a few last-minute presents.— Ted Mooney

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Examples of board in a Sentence

Noun They nailed some boards over the broken window. They covered the board in fabric and pinned some photographs to it. the board that is used to play games like chess and checkers I saw a notice on the board calling for volunteers. Write the answers on the board. She is on the town's planning board. The parole board has decided that the prisoner is not yet ready for release. Verb You must have a ticket in order to board the train. The pirates tried to board the ship, but we fought them off. We're supposed to board at 10:15. We're now boarding all passengers. The flight is about to begin boarding. Passengers should remain in the boarding area. The caretaker boarded the window. They board guests during the summer season. Many students board at the college.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun United said in a separate statement that there were 231 passengers and 10 crew on board. — Author: Gillian Flaccus, David Zalubowski, Anchorage Daily News, "Debris falls from United plane during emergency landing after engine failure near Denver," 21 Feb. 2021 The plane landed safely at Denver International Airport, and no one on board or on the ground was hurt, authorities said. — Gillian Flaccus And David Zalubowski, chicagotribune.com, "Plane engine parts fall from sky, leaving passengers, Denver suburb shaken: ‘I thought we were going down’," 21 Feb. 2021 United said in a separate statement that there were 231 passengers and 10 crew on board. — Gillian Flaccus, sun-sentinel.com, "Debris falls from sky over Denver after Boeing 777 engine catches fire before emergency landing; no injuries reported | Videos," 20 Feb. 2021 As the New York Times noted recently, a new car or truck can have as many as 100 of the chips on board as essential components in everything from touchscreens to transmissions. — Colin Beresford, Car and Driver, "Semiconductor Shortage Halting Car Production across North America," 20 Feb. 2021 The Baby Driver filmmaker is on board to develop and direct a new adaptation of Stephen King's science-fiction novel The Running Man for Paramount Pictures, EW has confirmed. — Clark Collis, EW.com, "Edgar Wright to direct new version of Stephen King's The Running Man," 19 Feb. 2021 The team did not say whether Krejci was on board the cross-country flight to Reno, Nev., and the hourlong bus trip to the site of Sunday’s game against the Flyers at the edge of Lake Tahoe (2 p.m., NBC). — Matt Porter, BostonGlobe.com, "Jack Studnicka is ready to step in for Bruins if David Krejci is out Sunday," 19 Feb. 2021 Abrams said crews with Roto-Rooter's branch in Houston had about 1,300 jobs on the board and awaiting help on Thursday. — Ryan W. Miller, USA TODAY, "Water pipes cracked by ice will flood buildings across Texas, and experts fear the damage will be as bad as a hurricane," 19 Feb. 2021 The school tackles a concept each month, with whole-school assemblies to bring all students on board. — The Salt Lake Tribune, "COVID-19 is fueling innovation in Utah schools to help students focus and cope," 19 Feb. 2021 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb His happiest time came during the Depression when the Bislands sent him to board with another family, the Wilsons, and attend a Bronxville public school. — Los Angeles Times, "Lawrence Ferlinghetti, poet and titan of the Beat era, dies at 101," 23 Feb. 2021 The first batch of samples have been collected, according to the company’s website, and are set to board the first mission scheduled for later this year. — Steve Rubenstein, San Francisco Chronicle, "Spit in space: S.F. company offers to 'send a piece of you to the moon'," 19 Feb. 2021 When the Robinsons lined up to board the plane, they were told they had been bumped. — Chris Lamb, USA TODAY, "The first trip to spring training: A Jackie Robinson story you may not know from 75 years ago," 17 Feb. 2021 The rumors are true: Nvidia is supplementing the sky-high demand for GeForce RTX 30-series graphics cards by releasing stock of older GPUs to board partners, who can then use those to craft new hardware. — Brad Chacos, PCWorld, "Confirmed: Nvidia taps the GTX 1050 Ti to battle graphics card shortages," 11 Feb. 2021 United, Southwest, and American Airlines did not allow exceptions to board, requiring masking for passengers 2 years and older. — Jeremy Lott, Washington Examiner, "Will the CDC transportation mask mandates matter?," 4 Feb. 2021 Those who board one of the ship’s landing crafts — in hopes, say, of rushing to the side of still-living loved ones — will be returning to Earth to die there. — New York Times, "We Live in Disastrous Times. Why Can’t Disaster Movies Evolve?," 4 Feb. 2021 Will board members or donors have sway over what the newsroom covers? — The Salt Lake Tribune, "Our Nonprofit Model," 28 Dec. 2020 After going on a mini-rampage in his hometown of Philadelphia, Bicke attempts to board a plane for Washington, DC with a gun and a suitcase full of gasoline. — Jennifer M. Wood, Wired, "The 20 Most Underrated Movies of the Past 20 Years," 24 Dec. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'board.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

25 Feb 2021

Cite this Entry

“Board.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/board. Accessed 5 Mar. 2021.

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More Definitions for board

board

noun

English Language Learners Definition of board

(Entry 1 of 2)

: a long, thin, flat piece of wood

: a flat piece of material (such as wood or cardboard) that is used for a special purpose

: a large, smooth surface for writing on

board

verb

English Language Learners Definition of board (Entry 2 of 2)

: to get into or onto (an airplane, a bus, a train, etc.)

: to put or allow (someone) into or onto an airplane, a bus, a train, etc.

: to cover or close (something) with pieces of wood

See the full definition for board in the English Language Learners Dictionary

board

noun

\ ˈbȯrd

Kids Definition of board

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : a sawed piece of lumber that is much broader and longer than it is thick

2 : a usually rectangular piece of rigid material used for some special purpose a diving board a game board

3 : blackboard

4 : a number of persons having authority to manage or direct something the school board

5 : meals given at set times for a price He paid $20 a week for room and board.

6 boards plural : the low wooden wall enclosing a hockey rink

7 : a sheet of insulating material carrying electronic parts (as for a computer)

on board

: aboard entry 1

board

verb

boarded; boarding

Kids Definition of board (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : to go aboard We boarded the plane in New York.

2 : to cover with boards The windows were boarded up.

3 : to give or get meals and a place to live for a price The students board at the college. They board guests in the summer.

board

noun

\ ˈbō(ə)rd, ˈbȯ(ə)rd

Medical Definition of board

1 : a group of persons having supervisory, managerial, investigatory, or advisory powers medical licensing boards a board of health

2 : an examination given by an examining board —often used in plural passed his medical boards

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board

noun, often capitalized

Legal Definition of board

1a : a group of individuals having managerial, supervisory, investigatory, or advisory powers over a public or private business, trust, or other organization or institution Board of Regents Board of Bar Overseers

b : board of directors

2a : a group of citizens elected to administer the business of or an aspect of the business of a political unit (as a town or county) a board of selectmen

b : a federal, state, or local government agency — see also National Labor Relations Board

3 : a securities or commodities exchange — see also board of trade

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