heave to

verb

heaved to; heaving to; heaves to

intransitive verb

: to halt the headway of a ship (as by positioning a sailboat with the jib aback and the rudder turned sharply to windward)

Examples of heave to in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood tried a last-second heave to reach the end zone and win the game on a Hail Mary throw. — Ryan Gaydos Outkick, FOXNews.com, 6 Sep. 2026

Young started his air attack with an impressive heave to wideout Xaiver Legette in the end zone during 11-on-11 work. — Charlotte Observer, 29 July 2026

Then Otega Oweh, Kentucky's star player, made a halfcourt heave to send this game to overtime, tied 73-73. — Andrew Greif, NBC news, 20 Mar. 2026

Scoring 24 against Troy, including a halfcourt heave to force overtime, then five in a 40-point loss against Michigan. — Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1775, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for heave to

• amadou
• avenue
• ballyhoo
• baraboo
• barbecue
• barbeque
• bugaboo
• cabildo
• caribou
• cockatoo
• detinue
• devalue