Boat: Meaning (information, definition, explanation, facts)

A boat, like a ship, is a buoyant vessel designed for the purpose of transporting people and possibly goods across water. A boat is usually smaller than a ship. Some boats are commonly carried by a ship or on land using trailers.

A boat consists of one or more buoyancy structures called hulls and some system of propulsion, such as, oars, paddles, a setting pole, a sail or a motor.

Boats

• Banga
• Canoe
• Catamaran
• Coracle
• Cruiser
• Cutter
• Dhow
• Dinghy
• Dory
• Dutch Barge
• Felucca
• Ferry
• Folding boat
• Go-fast boat
• Inflatable boat
• Jetboat
• Junk
• Kayak
• Ketch
• Lifeboat
• Log boat
• Luxemotor
• Motorboat
• Norfolk wherry
• Outrigger canoe
• Peniche
• Pinnace
• Powerboat
• Raft
• Rigid-hulled inflatable boat (RIB)
• Sailboat
• Schooner
• Sloop
• Tjalk
• Trimaran
• Whaleboat
• Yacht
• Yawl

• In rowing, a boat refers to the collection of people rowing a particular shell, which is the term applied to the actual vehicle. So a university might refer to its first boat, meaning the rowers who make up their best team, rather than their best piece of equipment.
• A submarine is generally referred to as a boat rather than a ship.
• A ship can be informally known as a boat, especially by its crew. This use is uncommon in the case of a warship.

Unsuitable floating vehicles have been used for sports purposes as well, this is known as bathtub races.

A specialized set of terms is used to designate directions relative to a boat or ship.

The bow is the foremost point on the ship: the point that is ahead when the vessel is underway. The stern is the rear. The adjectives fore/forward and aft mean towards the bow and stern, respectively.

The left and right sides of a ship, relative to a person facing forward, are termed port and starboard.

The side of the ship towards which the wind is blowing is referred to as the windward side, with the side away from the wind is termed the leeward side.