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Glite Dictionary
parasail

parasail

1 7.8
A parachute pulled by a boat that lifts a person into the air
  • noun
  • /ˈpɛrəˌseɪl/
: paracaídas de remolque
  • His parasail badly damaged, Billy tries to keep aloft.
  • rent a parasail

Examples

  • Parasail with us through the skies over endless blue water.

    Disturbia (2007)

  • A parasail chute is caught in the branches of a tree.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • Grant and Billy exchange a dubious look, then begin pulling the parasail out of the tree.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • And it's not just any boat either; it's the same Dino-Soar boat that was pulling the parasail.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • In big block letters on the parasail is stitched "DINO-SOAR."

    Fiction book (2001)

  • A brightly colored parasail blossoms behind the boat, hoisting Ben and Eric aloft.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • Instead of tumbling down to the river, he finds himself swinging from his harness—the parasail snagged on a rock spire above him.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • Enrique Cardoso helps Americans Ben Hildebrand and twelve-year-old Eric Kirvy, already wearing life vests, strap themselves into a two-person parasail harness.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • A brightly colored parasail blossoms behind the boat, hoisting Ben and Eric aloft.

  • Gazing up at the taut black parasail, she asked, "Where are we headed?"

Surface Forms

parasail singular
parasails plural

Morphology

parasail = parachute + sail (semi-transparent) = para + sail

The word is a blend based on parachute and sail, so the components give a useful clue, but the result names a specialized sport device rather than a straightforward literal combination.

Etymology

Parasail is made of the parts para-, as in parachute, and sail, like a boat 'sail' that catches the air. So a parasail is a parachute-like sail that lifts you while a boat pulls you.