sail 1 of 2

verb

Definition of sailnext
1
as in to boat
to travel on water in a vessel I can't sail when there's any breeze at all because I get seasick easily

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in to flow
to move or proceed smoothly and readily sailed through the latest assignment

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to hover
to rest or move along the surface of a liquid or in the air a leaf sailed by, carried by the breeze

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

sail

2 of 2

noun

ˈsāl How to pronounce sail (audio)
as in voyage
a journey over water in a vessel we went for a brief sail on the bay to relax

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of sail
Verb
The actors learned how to sail and how to row and the boat’s 26-man crew were dressed as extras and incorporated into the movie. — Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times, 7 July 2026 Where Crystal Symphony Sails The ship is sailing to Alaska in the summer of 2026 before moving onward to Canada, New England, and the Caribbean. — Fran Golden, Travel + Leisure, 7 July 2026
Noun
Juan Soto was thrown out trying to stretch a single into a double, something that usually might take the wind out of the sails early, but Bo Bichette came through with a single to score Lindor. — Abbey Mastracco, New York Daily News, 5 July 2026 The Dodgers’ sails were becalmed for six innings by Padres starter Michael King, leaving them trailing 3-0 in the seventh. — Bill Plunkett, Oc Register, 4 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for sail
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sail
  1. boat
  2. flow
  3. hover
  4. voyage
  5. ferry
  6. cruise
  7. float
  8. glide
Verb
  • No boating deaths were recorded during that period, the patrol said.
    — Emily Harter, Kansas City Star, 6 July 2026
  • Severe storms cause widespread damage in Wisconsin The boating incident occurred as severe thunderstorms moved across southern Wisconsin, triggering widespread damage in Walworth County.
    — Anthony Thompson, USA Today, 4 July 2026
Definition of boat
Verb
  • Rainfall — as little as a tenth of an inch, according to the Allegheny County Sanitary Authority, or ALCOSAN — can cause an overflow of stormwater and raw sewage to flow into the rivers.
    — Finch Walker, USA Today, 5 July 2026
  • Through the morning, a river of mourners dressed in black flowed from the Grand Mosalla.
    — Billy Stockwell, CNN Money, 5 July 2026
Definition of flow
Verb
  • Dark clouds hovered around the stadium just before kickoff, threatening to delay the start of the game, but Mother Nature apparently is a soccer fan, because the storm veered away.
    — Miami Herald, Miami Herald, 4 July 2026
  • Temperatures in the beach cities pleasantly hovered in the 70s, a stark contrast to East Coast communities broiling in a heat wave.
    — Lila Seidman, Los Angeles Times, 4 July 2026
Definition of hover
Noun
  • And as the ships’ names imply, a voyage on any one of these vessels is one that is designed to bring happiness to all who partake.
    — Condé Nast Traveler, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 July 2026
  • The acclaimed author of The Invention of Nature, Andrea Wulf brings erudition and flair to Forster’s peripatetic career as teenaged crewman on Captain Cook’s global voyage.
    — Hamilton Cain, Time, 7 July 2026
Definition of voyage
Verb
  • With a capacity of 45 passengers, the mésoscaphe, a submarine for shallow to mid-range depths, made more than a thousand dives that summer, ferrying 33,000 ordinary people into the lake’s depths.
    — Bill Gourgey, Popular Science, 2 July 2026
  • The gift from the Middle Eastern power raised ethical concerns, but Trump saw the plane as a necessary replacement to the 35-year-old planes that had previously ferried him as president.
    — Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Los Angeles Times, 1 July 2026
Definition of ferry
Verb
  • In his first bout at 170 pounds, Makhachev cruised to a decision win over Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 322 in November 2025, easily wresting the UFC welterweight crown from Della Maddalena.
    — Trent Reinsmith, Forbes.com, 4 July 2026
  • Zebby Matthews cruised through the first four frames, allowing just one run.
    — Jace Frederick, Twin Cities, 4 July 2026
Definition of cruise
Verb
  • By tying ticket access to listening behavior rather than open on-sales or presale codes floating on secondary marketplaces, Spotify is testing whether platform data can succeed where CAPTCHAs and queue systems have struggled.
    — Lauren Schuster, Sacbee.com, 6 July 2026
  • Monitor Temperature and Water Quality A floating pool thermometer—available for around $10—tells you if your pond is getting too hot.
    — Anne Readel, Better Homes & Gardens, 6 July 2026
Definition of float
Verb
  • Who are these slimy gastropods that have been gliding across Earth since before the Ice Age?
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 10 July 2026
  • An endless procession of black SUVs, Escalades, luxury coaches, polished muscle cars and Uber Blacks glided onto West 31st Street.
    — Bryan West, USA Today, 7 July 2026
Definition of glide

Phrases Containing sail

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said uncle
sail
sailboat
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Cite this Entry

“Sail.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sail. Accessed 11 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on sail

Nglish: Translation of sail for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about sail

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