: a strongly built powerful boat used for towing and pushing
called also towboat
Examples of tugboat in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The ship’s backward speed increased from 3.3 knots to 5.1 knots between 8:23 and 8:24, p.m., which prompted the harbor pilot to call for tugboat assistance.
—
David Chiu, People.com, 1 July 2025
The situation began to unfold after the ship was untied from the dock at 8:16 p.m. Three minutes later, the tugboat Charles D. McAllister assisted the Cuauhtémoc off the pier.
—Doc Louallen, ABC News, 30 June 2025
Jeff Gammons--Getty Images After the fire initially happened, the plan was to have a tugboat crew pull the ship back to a port in Mexico.
—Olivia B. Waxman, Time, 24 June 2025
The tugboat got new boilers and was renamed the J.C. Ames.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for tugboat
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David Chiu, People.com, 1 July 2025
The situation began to unfold after the ship was untied from the dock at 8:16 p.m. Three minutes later, the tugboat Charles D. McAllister assisted the Cuauhtémoc off the pier.
—Doc Louallen, ABC News, 30 June 2025
Jeff Gammons--Getty Images After the fire initially happened, the plan was to have a tugboat crew pull the ship back to a port in Mexico.
—Olivia B. Waxman, Time, 24 June 2025
The tugboat got new boilers and was renamed the J.C. Ames.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for tugboat
Cite this Entry
“Tugboat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tugboat. Accessed 10 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
tugboat
noun
tug·boat
ˈtəg-ˌbōt 
: a strongly built powerful boat used for towing and pushing ships
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