starboard

verb

starboarded; starboarding; starboards

transitive verb

: to turn or put (a helm or rudder) to the right

Examples of starboard in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The bow deck stretches overhead offering shade while the open sides to port and starboard allow for ocean breezes. —Kevin Koenig, Robb Report, 21 Nov. 2025

Nosler and Speer bullets went right through the rib-cages of large animals like gemsbok, zebra, and kudu from port to starboard and vice versa, bll’t I was astonished to see that the 130-gr. —Jack O'Connor, Outdoor Life, 24 Sep. 2025

MasterCraft’s SurfStar system is centered on two paddles, one to port and one to starboard at the rear of the boat. —New Atlas, 29 Aug. 2025

Fully forward, a double guest cabin sits athwartships with an ensuite bath aft to starboard. —Kathleen Turner, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1605, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for starboard

• harbored

Kids Definition

starboard

1 of 2 noun

star·​board ˈstär-bərd 

: the right side of a ship or aircraft looking forward

starboard

2 of 2 adjective

: of, relating to, or situated to starboard

Etymology

Old English stēorbord "starboard, side of a ship from which it is steered," from stēor "steering oar" and bord "the side of a ship"

Word Origin

The word starboard has nothing whatever to do with stars. The star- part of the word used to be spelled stēor- in Old English and referred to the steering oar or rudder of a ship. In those days the rudder was located on the side of the ship to the right of a person facing toward the bow. Nowadays, of course, the rudder is at the stern. The -board part of the word refers not to a plank but to a whole side of a ship. This meaning survives today in the verb to board a ship or airplane. The side opposite the starboard is usually called the port. The name probably comes from the fact that this side faced the port or dock when the ship was steered into a harbor. The port side is sometimes also called the larboard. The lar- part of this word was spelled lade- in Old English. It probably came from the verb laden, meaning "to load." So the larboard was the side from which the cargo was loaded and unloaded.