ferry

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈfɛɹi/; /ˈfɛəɹi/ (US)^[1]

Etymology

The verb is Middle English ferien, inherited from Old English ferian (“to carry, convey, transport”),^[2][3][4] from Proto-Germanic *farjanan,^[2][3] source also of Old Norse ferja, to ferry, and Gothic 𐍆𐌰𐍂𐌾𐌰𐌽 (farjan), to travel by boat,^[3][2] from the root of fare, to go,^[2][5] from Proto-Indo-European *per-, to lead, pass over.^[3] The noun is probably from Old Norse ferja, ferry-boat, or from the verb.^[2][5][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

To carry or transport: about 725, in Beowulf;^[2] in late Old English especially over water.^[3]

Semantic evolution

The noun, a passage over a river, is from the early 15th century (about 1425),^[3][6] and earlier in the surname Blauncheferye (1279).^[2] A place where boats carry people across water is from the mid-15th century,^[3][6] and the right of ferrying, in law, from 1721.^[6] The boat itself is from 1590, in Spenser, short for ferryboat (feribot about 1374).^[2][3] A flight delivering aircraft or goods is from 1917,^[6] and to deliver an aircraft under its own power is a later use.^[7][8]

Timeline

• c. 725 – to carry.^[2]
• 1279 – in a surname.^[2]
• c. 1425 – a crossing (noun).^[6]
• mid-15th century – a ferry place.^[3]
• 1590 – a ferryboat.^[2]
• 1917 – an air ferry.^[6]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A boat that carries passengers and vehicles across water, especially as a regular service.
2. A place where such a boat crosses.
3. (law) The right to charge for carrying people by boat.
4. The delivery of aircraft by flying them to their destination.

Verb

1. To carry people or goods across water by boat.
2. To transport people or goods, especially regularly, by any vehicle.
3. To deliver an aircraft by flying it.

Word family

• unferried
• ferryboat
• ferriage
• ferryman
• ferry bridge

Related words

• fare
• ford
• fjord

Usage notes

In Devon, gamekeepers called young weasels ferries.^[9]

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
5. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ a b c d e f Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
8. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
9. ^ Wright, Joseph, ed. (1898–1905), The English Dialect Dictionary, 6 vols., Oxford: Henry Frowde; via EDD Online 4.0, University of Innsbruck (CC BY 4.0)