sails 1 of 2

Definition of sailsnext
present tense third-person singular of sail
1
as in boats
to travel on water in a vessel I can't sail when there's any breeze at all because I get seasick easily

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2
3
as in floats
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

sails

2 of 2

noun

plural of sail
as in voyages
a journey over water in a vessel we went for a brief sail on the bay to relax

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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 sails
Verb
The boat sails from Genoa in complete darkness, a precaution against air raids. Marcy Thompson, Scientific American, 16 Apr. 2026 The line sails year-round from Southern ports including Port Canaveral, Fort Lauderdale, Tampa, Galveston, and New Orleans. Linnea Bailey, Southern Living, 8 Apr. 2026 Most tanker movement in the key Strait of Hormuz, where roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil typically sails past Iran’s coastline, remains at a halt. Camila Gomez, The Orlando Sentinel, 31 Mar. 2026 Capasecca Yacht Another bespoke yachting experience, Capasecca — featuring four cabins that sleep up to eight guests — sails the Amalfi Coast, Capri, Ischia and Procida, backed by a family with generations of seafaring heritage. Elycia Rubin, HollywoodReporter, 24 Mar. 2026 In response, Iran has nearly halted traffic through the narrow Strait of Hormuz, where a fifth of the world’s oil typically sails from the Persian Gulf to customers worldwide. Stan Choe, Chicago Tribune, 16 Mar. 2026 Iran’s actions have effectively stopped cargo traffic through the narrow Strait of Hormuz, where a fifth of the world’s oil typically sails. Alex Veiga, Los Angeles Times, 13 Mar. 2026 Much will depend on what happens with the Strait of Hormuz off Iran’s coast, where roughly a fifth of the world’s oil typically sails. Jeremy Tanner, The Hill, 7 Mar. 2026 Kate Stewart, who has carried the Texas offense tonight, sails a long double into center field to score pinch runner Adayah Wallace and now has three of the four Longhorn RBIs. Thomas Jones, Austin American Statesman, 6 Mar. 2026
Noun
There is wind in the Taskmaster sails internationally. Stewart Clarke, Deadline, 14 Apr. 2026 The Disney Dream sails three- and four-night Bahamas sailings. Erin Gifford, Southern Living, 14 Apr. 2026 The trimming of the sails comes amid a particularly rocky run for Bad Robot, with several ambitious projects featuring high-wattage talent getting a hard pass or stuck in development hell. Joe Otterson, Variety, 8 Apr. 2026 That was never likely to actually happen, but the ceasefire takes the wind out of the sails of Democrats who had enjoyed the internecine fighting. Jim Edwards, Fortune, 8 Apr. 2026 The fighting has halted most of the traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway off Iran’s coast where a fifth of the world’s oil sails on a typical day. Stan Choe, Los Angeles Times, 7 Apr. 2026 The Comets entered the final weekend hopeful to win the MASL Shield, but a pair of overtime defeats to the San Diego Sockers took the wind out of their sails. Nathan Dunn, Kansas City Star, 30 Mar. 2026 Iraq’s surprise invasion in 1980 served as a wind in the sails of the Guards, who saw their role drastically expanded to keep Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein’s forces at bay. Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 28 Mar. 2026 Instead of siding with one extreme or the other, he was accused of trimming his sails to take advantage of shifts in the prevailing winds. David Brooks, The Atlantic, 25 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sails
Verb
  • Shrimp boats bob in the harbor, American flags flutter from pastel porches and old oak trees draped in Spanish moss offer cool shade.
    Noreen Kompanik, Boston Herald, 19 Oct. 2025
  • Kennebunkport, Maine Lobster boats bob in the waves and beachcombers search for shells.
    Allison Tibaldi, USA Today, 20 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Carbios reported a financial loss of about $12 million, reflecting lower income from cash investments, interest flows with subsidiaries, interest paid on loans and a non-cash impairment provision.
    Alexandra Harrell, Footwear News, 17 Apr. 2026
  • The cost spiked due to a slowdown in traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a key artery for oil shipments through which one-fifth of the world's oil supply normally flows.
    Mary Cunningham, CBS News, 17 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • So Fasanara floats the cash, collects interest from the seller and directly assumes payment from the buying squad.
    Justin Birnbaum, Sportico.com, 16 Apr. 2026
  • Just as Earth has two very different poles — the Antarctic south pole, marked by a massive continent, and the icy north pole, whose ice floats atop the waters of the Arctic ocean — so too does Saturn.
    Big Think, Big Think, 15 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • The ministry urged operators to comply with the directive and to ensure all required safety and security equipment is available and functioning before and during voyages, to maintain the highest levels of safety for all trips.
    Dalia Abdelwahab, CNN Money, 11 Apr. 2026
  • As shipping giants like Cosco, Hapag-Lloyd, Maersk, and MSC have halted new voyages into the Gulf, some of the world’s busiest ports have become idle and new trade routes have emerged.
    Kelsey Warner, semafor.com, 8 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • The blockage of the strait, which normally ferries 20% of the world's oil, sent global energy prices soaring.
    Kevin Breuninger,Spencer Kimball, CNBC, 9 Apr. 2026
  • Iran has effectively halted trade traveling through the Strait of Hormuz, the maritime trade route that ferries roughly 20% of the world’s petroleum.
    Kathryn Palmer, USA Today, 9 Mar. 2026
Verb
  • Aledo cruises through district Aledo has faced more adversity than usual on a tough non-district slate.
    Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 16 Apr. 2026
  • Sometimes cruises in the spring and summer just call for breathable and breezy clothing, and skorts are a way to feel a bit dressed up while enjoying the comfort of shorts.
    Robin Raven, Travel + Leisure, 15 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • Around his head hovers a cluster of disembodied faces — creepy alt-Altmans, their expressions ranging from anger to open-mouthed woe.
    Cath Virginia, The Verge, 11 Apr. 2026
  • Numbers began to skyrocket around the time of the Artemis II launch on April 1st, peaking at around 12,434 at time of writing— a huge jump against the game's standard average player count, which hovers around 3,000 to 4,000.
    Alan Bradley, Space.com, 9 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • Away from the city’s concrete and sounds, the scent of herbs drifts through the air and light pours in from the floor-to-ceiling windows.
    Travel + Leisure Editors, Travel + Leisure, 15 Apr. 2026
  • Across millions of interactions, the system drifts towards flattery.
    Tim Requarth, Longreads, 9 Apr. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Sails.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sails. Accessed 18 Apr. 2026.

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