yacht

1 of 2

noun

ˈyät 

: any of various recreational watercraft: such as

a

: a sailboat used for racing

b

: a large usually motor-driven craft used for pleasure cruising

yacht

2 of 2

verb

yachted; yachting; yachts

intransitive verb

: to race or cruise in a yacht

Examples of yacht in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Featuring her husband, Carter Reum, also 44, and their two children, 2-year-old son Phoenix and 19-month-old daughter London, the snaps featured them enjoying meals on their yacht, snorkeling and shopping for souvenirs. —Clare Fisher, People.com, 26 June 2025

But first, a foam party The couple has seemingly kicked off their wedding week with a foam party on Bezos' multi-million dollar yacht Koru off the coast of Europe on June 22, according to photos published by media outlets including Fox News and People. —Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 25 June 2025

Verb

Just last week, she was photographed enjoying summer sunshine while yachting around the Capri coast. —Charlotte Phillipp, People.com, 15 June 2025

With a long history of high-quality construction and a focus on R&D that’s backed by parent company and yachting giant Ferretti Group, the Italian brand is the industry leader for performance boats. —Katia Damborsky, Forbes.com, 13 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

obsolete Dutch jaght, from Middle Low German jacht, short for jachtschip, literally, hunting ship

First Known Use

Noun

1557, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1836, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing yacht

• land yacht
• yacht club

Rhymes for yacht

• aught
• baht
• blot
• bott
• bought
• brought
• caught
• clot
• cot
• cott
• dot
• fought

Kids Definition

yacht

1 of 2 noun

ˈyät 

: a fairly small ship used for pleasure cruising or racing

yacht

2 of 2 verb

: to race or cruise in a yacht

Etymology

Noun

from obsolete Dutch jaght (now jacht), short for jachtschip, literally, "hunting ship"

Word Origin

In the 16th century, the Dutch were being attacked by pirates and smugglers who managed to escape after their raids because their ships were much faster than the heavy warships used by the Dutch. To solve the problem, the Dutch began building smaller, sleeker, faster craft. This new kind of craft was called a jaght (later spelled jacht) in Dutch. The word was derived from the Dutch phrase jachtschip, literally meaning "hunting ship." In 1660, the Dutch East India Company presented one of these boats to England's King Charles II. He used it for a pleasure boat rather than for chasing pirates. Soon, other wealthy Englishmen wanted boats just like the king's. The style was then copied and improved over the years. The name for this craft also went through a number of changes over the years, from the original jaght, taken from the Dutch, to the yacht spelling we have today.