Synonyms

speedboat

American

[speed-boht] / ˈspidˌboʊt /

noun

a motorboat designed for high speeds.

speedboat British

/ ˈspiːdˌbəʊt /

noun

a high-speed motorboat having either an inboard or outboard motor

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of speedboat

1910–15; speed ( def. ) + boat ( def. )

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Ten of them this past week boarded a speedboat for what one of them told relatives was a fishing trip.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 27, 2026

The interior ministry said earlier that the speedboat had entered its territorial waters and was "one nautical mile off Cayo Falcones" on the country's northern coast when it was intercepted.

From BBC • Feb. 26, 2026

Lane Kiffin, by contrast, bailed on his players and now resembles a renegade pirate at the helm of a flashy speedboat — fast, loud, brash and obsessively searching for buried treasure.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 6, 2025

"A tanker of this size cannot be turned around in a matter of days, like a speedboat turning 180 degrees in the other direction. It takes time."

From Barron's • Nov. 26, 2025

A cherry-red speedboat went tearing past the beach, then made a tight circle and roared back in our direction.

From "Flush" by Carl Hiaasen

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023