bumboat
1
9.9
A small boat that sells food and goods to ships at sea
- noun
- UK
:
bumboat
- We hired a bumboat to bring us supplies while we were sailing in the open sea.
Examples
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Bumboats.
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What's a bumboat for?
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Bumboats?
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The bumboat arrived at the dock to deliver fresh fruit and vegetables to the anchored ships.
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Local fishermen used a bumboat to transport their catch directly to the larger vessels waiting offshore.
Surface Forms
Etymology
Bumboat probably began as bum + boat, meaning a small boat that 'sells' or 'carries' goods to ships. One common idea is that bum comes from a Malay word for little local boats, so imagine a tiny boat coming alongside a larger ship with supplies — that image explains why a bumboat is a small supply boat.