1
: tugboat
2
: a compact shallow-draft boat with a squared bow designed and fitted for pushing tows of barges on inland waterways
Examples of towboat in a Sentence
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Jeffboat built a reputation as one of the country's largest inland shipyards, and while the company is known for the massive towboats launched into the Ohio River, large World War II-era vessels also came from Jeffersonville.
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Leo Bertucci, Louisville Courier Journal, 18 Oct. 2025
Witnesses watch as barge hits sailboat of campers The operator likely couldn’t hear from inside the pilot house atop the towboat, the captain said.
—Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 3 Aug. 2025
The Wake Pro 230 was designed around being a towboat, for water-skiing, wakeboarding, or wake-surfing.
—Michael Verdon, Robb Report, 11 July 2025
In 2002, a freight barge struck a pier of Oklahoma’s Interstate 40 bridge after the towboat’s captain lost consciousness, collapsing a section of the bridge and killing 14.
—Marc Ramirez, USA TODAY, 24 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for towboat
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Leo Bertucci, Louisville Courier Journal, 18 Oct. 2025
Witnesses watch as barge hits sailboat of campers The operator likely couldn’t hear from inside the pilot house atop the towboat, the captain said.
—Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 3 Aug. 2025
The Wake Pro 230 was designed around being a towboat, for water-skiing, wakeboarding, or wake-surfing.
—Michael Verdon, Robb Report, 11 July 2025
In 2002, a freight barge struck a pier of Oklahoma’s Interstate 40 bridge after the towboat’s captain lost consciousness, collapsing a section of the bridge and killing 14.
—Marc Ramirez, USA TODAY, 24 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for towboat
Cite this Entry
“Towboat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/towboat. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
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