: a strongly built powerful boat used for towing and pushing
called also towboat
Examples of tugboat in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Experts then came up with a sophisticated plan to use air cushions to lift the animal onto a tarp, which would have been secured to two pontoons and attached to a tugboat.
—
ABC News, 20 Apr. 2026
Seven years later —after Austin had successfully become a tugboat captain —a moment waiting in line with other struggling parents changed everything.
—Tereza Shkurtaj, PEOPLE, 11 Apr. 2026
At the time of the crash, the tugboat's radio was also tuned to a channel used to communicate with drawbridge operators instead of one used for emergencies on the water, according to prosecutors, even though the boat's path didn't include any drawbridges.
—Dennis Romero, NBC news, 1 Apr. 2026
The captain of the tugboat pushing a large construction barge that crashed into a sailboat full of summer campers, killing three young girls last summer, has been charged with their deaths.
—David Goodhue, Sun Sentinel, 31 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for tugboat
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ABC News, 20 Apr. 2026
Seven years later —after Austin had successfully become a tugboat captain —a moment waiting in line with other struggling parents changed everything.
—Tereza Shkurtaj, PEOPLE, 11 Apr. 2026
At the time of the crash, the tugboat's radio was also tuned to a channel used to communicate with drawbridge operators instead of one used for emergencies on the water, according to prosecutors, even though the boat's path didn't include any drawbridges.
—Dennis Romero, NBC news, 1 Apr. 2026
The captain of the tugboat pushing a large construction barge that crashed into a sailboat full of summer campers, killing three young girls last summer, has been charged with their deaths.
—David Goodhue, Sun Sentinel, 31 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for tugboat
Cite this Entry
“Tugboat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tugboat. Accessed 22 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
tugboat
noun
tug·boat
ˈtəg-ˌbōt 
: a strongly built powerful boat used for towing and pushing ships
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