Etymologically
Log in

dinghy

Etymology and origin of the English word dinghy

History Permalink
Formation
Borrowing
Borrowed from
Hindi डिंगी

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈdɪŋ.(ɡ)i/[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Hindi डिंगी (ḍiṅgī, “small boat”),[2][3][4][5][6] a diminutive of ḍeṅgā “boat”;[2][6] Merriam-Webster and Random House also give Bengali ḍiṅgi.[3][6] Barnhart and Etymonline suggest that it may come from Sanskrit droṇa “wooden trough”, related to dru “wood, tree”.[4][5] The -h- in the spelling shows that the g is hard.[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Originally a native rowing boat used on Indian rivers (1794).[7] Barnhart, Etymonline and Merriam-Webster date the word to 1810, Random House to 1785–95.[4][5][3][6]

Semantic evolution

From the Indian boat the word was extended to small extra boats carried by warships and merchant ships, and to the tender of a yacht.[7] By 1818 it meant a small pleasure rowing boat, especially a light skiff on the Thames,[7] and from 1939 an inflatable rubber boat carried on an aircraft.[7]

Timeline

  • 1794 – a native rowing boat on Indian rivers.[7]
  • 1818 – a small pleasure rowing boat.[7]
  • 1878 – dinghy-man.[7]
  • 1939 – an inflatable rubber boat.[7]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A small open boat carried on or towed behind a larger boat as a tender or lifeboat.
  2. A small rowing boat or sailing boat.
  3. An inflatable rubber life raft.
  4. Any of various rowing or sailing boats used along the coasts of India.
  • tree

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  3. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ a b c Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  5. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  6. ^ a b c d Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Dinghy.” Etymologically, 15 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/dinghy. Accessed 15 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·