Meaning & use
boat slip
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountableAmerican
A marked space in a marina where a boat can be tied up between two docks or piers.
Grammar: Countable: rent a boat slip.
Patterns
- rent a boat slip
- a boat slip at the marina
They rent a boat slip at the harbor for the summer.
A boat slip near the entrance costs more than one at the back.
The captain backed his sailboat carefully into the boat slip.
nouncountableBritish
A sloping ramp leading into the water, used for launching or pulling out boats.
Grammar: Countable, more common as 'slipway' in British English.
Patterns
- launch from a boat slip
We launched the dinghy from the old boat slip.
The village built a concrete boat slip for the fishermen.
He parked the trailer at the top of the boat slip.
Word forms
| plural | boat slips |
|---|
Common combinations
- rent a boat slip
- We plan to rent a boat slip for the season.
- boat slip fee
- The boat slip fee is paid monthly.
- empty boat slip
- An empty boat slip waited for the returning yacht.
- covered boat slip
- A covered boat slip protects the boat from rain.
- boat slip at the marina
- There is a boat slip at the marina with your name on it.
Synonyms and how they differ
- berth
- A more general word for a place where a ship ties up; boat slip suggests a small dock between piers.
- mooring
- Refers to any place or buoy where a boat is secured, even out in open water.
- slipway
- The British word for a launching ramp, not a place for long-term parking.
- dock
- Can mean the whole structure or a space beside it, so it is less specific than slip.
Word family
Commonly confused: boat slip or boat ramp? boat slip or slip of paper?
boat slip vs boat ramp
A boat ramp is a slope for launching and retrieving boats, while a boat slip is a berth where a boat is tied up.
boat slip vs slip of paper
This slip is a small piece of paper and has nothing to do with boats.
Practice
Where would you keep a sailboat for the whole summer at a marina?
Choose one answer.
A boat slip is a berth at a dock where a boat is kept. The other choices use 'slip' in unrelated ways.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “boat slip”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.