dinghy

noun

din·​ghy ˈdiŋ-ē 

-gē

plural dinghies

1

a

: a small boat carried on or towed behind a larger boat as a tender or a lifeboat

b

: a small sailboat

2

: a rubber life raft

3

: a rowboat or sailboat used to carry passengers or cargo on the coasts of India especially in sheltered waters around the peninsula

Synonyms

• yacht
• ship
• schooner
• sloop
• sailboat
• frigate

Examples of dinghy in a Sentence

we went sailing on the secluded lake in a little two-person dinghy

Recent Examples on the Web

Dozens have died in recent years trying to cross one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes in overcrowded dinghies. —CNN Money, 28 Sep. 2025

An additional autonomous dinghy could serve as the above water collection point. —New Atlas, 23 Sep. 2025

That’s why the entire system consists of an unmanned service boat with a dinghy, a drone, a small underwater search robot and the TUM diving robot. —Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 17 Sep. 2025

In the video, Heslop and Bane were captured on camera walking together before getting on board a dinghy and sailing away. —Becca Longmire, PEOPLE, 15 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Bengali ḍiṅgi, Urdu ḍīngī & Hindi ḍieṁgī

First Known Use

1810, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Rhymes for dinghy

• springy
• stringy

Kids Definition

dinghy

noun

din·​ghy ˈdiŋ-ē 

-gē

plural dinghies

1

: a small rowboat or sailboat

especially : one carried on a larger boat

2

: a rubber life raft