: a strongly built powerful boat used for towing and pushing
called also towboat
Examples of tugboat in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
After nearly a decade away from the game, Amesbury carved out a unique path: working on tugboats, competing in professional lacrosse and even battling in Ice Wars, a hockey fighting competition.
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Ben Delaforest, Kansas City Star, 7 Feb. 2025
The vessel is expected to depart town Monday for the first time since the collapse, accompanied by three McAllister Towing tugboats, one Moran Towing tugboat, a Coast Guard vessel and a work boat from the Resolve Marine salvage company.
—Boston Herald Wire Services, Boston Herald, 23 June 2024
The ship, though owned and operated by Chouest, was part of Shell’s Arctic fleet, designed for a specific role: as a tugboat that could tow Shell’s 250-foot-tall polar drill rig, the Kulluk, around the coast of Alaska and help anchor it in the waters of the Far North.
—Mckenzie Funk, ProPublica, 23 Jan. 2025
Finnish authorities deployed a tugboat and a patrol ship to secure the vessel and mitigate any potential environmental risks.
—George Monastiriakos, Newsweek, 30 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for tugboat 
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Ben Delaforest, Kansas City Star, 7 Feb. 2025
The vessel is expected to depart town Monday for the first time since the collapse, accompanied by three McAllister Towing tugboats, one Moran Towing tugboat, a Coast Guard vessel and a work boat from the Resolve Marine salvage company.
—Boston Herald Wire Services, Boston Herald, 23 June 2024
The ship, though owned and operated by Chouest, was part of Shell’s Arctic fleet, designed for a specific role: as a tugboat that could tow Shell’s 250-foot-tall polar drill rig, the Kulluk, around the coast of Alaska and help anchor it in the waters of the Far North.
—Mckenzie Funk, ProPublica, 23 Jan. 2025
Finnish authorities deployed a tugboat and a patrol ship to secure the vessel and mitigate any potential environmental risks.
—George Monastiriakos, Newsweek, 30 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for tugboat
Dictionary Entries Near tugboat
Cite this Entry
“Tugboat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tugboat. Accessed 21 Feb. 2025.
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tugboat
noun
tug·boat
ˈtəg-ˌbōt 
: a strongly built powerful boat used for towing and pushing ships
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