cruise

1 of 2

verb

cruised; cruising

intransitive verb

1
: to sail about touching at a series of ports
2
: to move or proceed speedily, smoothly, or effortlessly
I'll cruise over to her house to see if she's home
3
: to travel without destination or purpose
4
a
: to go about the streets at random but on the lookout for possible developments
the cabdriver cruised for an hour before being hailed
b
: to search (as in public places) for a sexual partner
5
a
of an airplane : to fly at the most efficient operating speed
b
of an automobile : to travel at a speed suitable for being maintained for a long distance

transitive verb

1
: to cruise over or about
2
: to inspect (land) with reference to possible lumber yield
3
a
: to search in (a public place) for a sexual partner
b
: to approach and suggest sexual relations to
4
: to explore or search the offerings of
especially : surf
cruise the Internet

cruise

2 of 2

noun

: an act or an instance of cruising
especially : a tour by ship

Examples of cruise in a Sentence

Verb We cruised for a week down the Yangtze River. He dreams of cruising the Mediterranean. The bus was cruising at 55 miles per hour. We were cruising along the highway. The plane was cruising at 30,000 feet. On Friday nights, teenagers cruise the main street in town to show off their cars. A car cruised past us. Noun We went on a weeklong cruise down the Yangtze River. They went on a cruise for their honeymoon.
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
Verb
Meeting Maryland Eastern Shore in a buy game at the XL Center on Saturday, two days after their return flight, the Huskies cruised to a 99-45 victory without their leading scorer, Alex Karaban. Joe Arruda, Hartford Courant, 1 Dec. 2024 Canada geese slowly cruise across the glass-like water of the pond as the early golden rays of morning light stream through the rising fog. Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register, 29 Nov. 2024
Noun
In addition to Celebrity, the port serves several other major cruise lines, including Carnival Cruise Line, Disney Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean, Norwegian Cruise Line, and MSC Cruises. Alison Fox, Travel + Leisure, 4 Dec. 2024 The best cruise lines for adults:What to know about 18+ sailings. Nathan Diller, USA TODAY, 4 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for cruise 

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Dutch kruisen to make a cross, cruise, from Middle Dutch crucen, from crūce cross, from Latin cruc-, crux

First Known Use

Verb

1651, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Noun

1696, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of cruise was in 1651

Dictionary Entries Near cruise

Cite this Entry

“Cruise.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cruise. Accessed 14 Dec. 2024.

Kids Definition

cruise

verb
ˈkrüz
cruised; cruising
1
: to travel by boat often stopping at a series of ports
2
: to travel for enjoyment
3
: to travel at the best operating speed
the cruising speed of an airplane
cruise noun
Etymology

Verb

from Dutch kruisen "to cruise, move crosswise," from early Dutch crūce "cross," from Latin crux "cross" — related to cross, crucial

More from Merriam-Webster on cruise

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