Meaning & use
Careened
Last updated
Moved swiftly and in an uncontrolled way, often swerving or tilting from side to side.
See it in a sentence
The runaway shopping cart careened across the parking lot and slammed into a car.
The truck careened off the icy road and into a ditch.
A note on using this word
In nautical use, "careen" originally meant to tip a ship onto its side for cleaning or repair; the sense of wild, out-of-control movement developed later, especially in American English.
Words with a similar meaning
Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.
Another way to use it
2. verb
Tilted a ship onto its side, typically for cleaning, caulking, or repair.
The sailors careened the ship on the beach to scrape barnacles from its hull.
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