carry-on

noun

car·ry-on | \ ˈker-ē-ˌȯn

, ˈka-rē-, -ˌän\

Definition of carry-on

(Entry 1 of 3)

1 British : carrying-on

2 : a piece of luggage suitable for being carried aboard an airplane by a passenger

carry-on

adjective

Definition of carry-on (Entry 2 of 3)

: carried or suitable for being carried aboard carry-on baggage

carry on

verb

carried on; carrying on; carries on

Definition of carry on (Entry 3 of 3)

transitive verb

: to continue doing, pursuing, or operating carry on research carried on the business

intransitive verb

1 : to continue especially in spite of hindrance or discouragement chose to carry on despite the weather

2 : to behave or speak in a foolish, excited, or improper manner shocked at how he carries on

Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about carry-on

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Synonyms for carry-on

Synonyms: Noun

carryall, grip, handbag, holdall [chiefly British], portmanteau, suitcase, traveling bag, wallet

Synonyms: Verb

act out, act up, misbehave

Examples of carry-on in a Sentence

Verb

a toddler crying and carrying on in the store she bravely carried on despite the loss of her husband

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Waymo, General Motors, and Intel, who also like Arizona’s minimal rules, calm traffic, and good weather, can carry on their work. — Alex Davies, WIRED, "Arizona Won't Be the Last Place to Micromanage Robocars," 27 Mar. 2018 Perry, speaking at CERAWeek by IHS Markit, the annual energy conference in Houston, said investors are focused on the debt companies are carrying on their balance sheets. — L.m. Sixel, Houston Chronicle, "In energy, cash is king," 6 Mar. 2018 In the aftermath of the devastating tragedy, fellow country singers, including Dolly Parton and Vince Gill, offered up their own bands so Reba could carry on with her tour. — Blair Donovan, Country Living, "Reba McEntire Honors Late Band Members Who Died in a Tragic Plane Crash 28 Years Ago," 18 Mar. 2019 No airplane has overhead bin space for each person to carry on a bag, Kress tells me. — Aditi Shrikant, Vox, "Why airlines make you check your carry-on bags," 20 Dec. 2018 Second-year running back Aaron Jones — who exploded for 145 rushing yards, 9.7 yards per carry and two scores in a win over Miami last weekend — enters the game with an eye-opening 6.8 yards per carry on the season. — Mike Vorel, The Seattle Times, "Seahawks need to solve struggling run defense to make a realistic playoff push," 13 Nov. 2018 The man reportedly didn’t realize the gun was missing and carried on shopping. — Casey Quackenbush, Time, "Child Fires a Shot Inside an Indiana IKEA Store After Finding a Loaded Gun in a Sofa, Police Say," 26 June 2018 Murray completed 18 of his 21 passing attempts, tossed three touchdowns against zero interceptions and averaged 10.1 yards per carry on 14 carries. — Chris Johnson, SI.com, "Kyler Murray's Baseball and Football Careers Converge for an Intriguing Summer at Oklahoma," 1 June 2018 Anspach is proud of his work in introducing the program, which will be carried on by others. — Bill Glauber, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Marquette law school grad makes most of a second chance after drug and alcohol dependence," 18 May 2018

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