From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishsailsail1 /seɪl/ ●●● S3 verb 1 [intransitive always + adverb/preposition, transitive]TTW to travel on or across an area of water in a boat or shipsail across/into/out of etc the first Europeans to sail across the Atlantic Three tall ships sailed past. She always wanted to sail around the world.sail the Pacific/the Atlantic etc We’re taking two months off to sail the Caribbean.2 [intransitive]TTW to start a journey by boat or ship We sail at dawn.sail for They’re sailing for Antigua next week.3 [intransitive, transitive]TTW to direct or control the movement of a boat or ship that has a sail Blake sailed the ship safely through the narrow passage. My father taught me to sail.4 [intransitive always + adverb/preposition]TTA to move quickly and smoothly through the airsail through/over/into etc A ball came sailing over the fence.5 [intransitive always + adverb/preposition]WALK to move forwards gracefully and confidently She sailed into the room.6 → sail close to the wind → sail through something→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
sail• The ship sailed at dusk.• She sailed by without looking at him.• We had crossed over to Mykines early in the day, sailing down the long fiord from the village of Sørvágur.• We sail first thing in the morning• We'll sail from Miami to Nassau.• He sailed from Southampton on May 6th.• There was a picture of Dick sailing his boat in the Caribbean.• Are you capable of sailing in the prevailing conditions?• Clearly the 49ers are sailing in uncharted waters.• I sail past a little development of off-the-shelf ranch homes.• Jeff ducked as the ball sailed past his head.• I just want to quit my job and sail the South Pacific.• He could sail this water drunk and blindfolded.• The Pequod sailed toward the island.• I sail up the hill and along Hyde Hill Lane as if I were a balloon.sail around the world• Yachtsmen, too, after sailing around the world with only the wind as a companion.sail for• What year did Columbus sail for the New World?sail through/over/into etc• But the relatively small civil service portion could sail through, if Republicans sign on to them.• The United States insists it has the right to sail through the international waters of the strait.• The prospect of sailing into the late autumn was itself the major worry.• Philip Jimeno offered the bill, expecting it to sail through the legislature.• Here it probably happened by sailing into the steep wave resulting in a sudden loss of speed.• Marie Brown thought she was one of the fortunate ones to sail through unaffected.• I stood back and she went past me like a ship sailing into war.• The imaginary central point in the sail through which the power of the sail acts.sailsail2 ●●○ noun 1 TTW[countable] a large piece of strong cloth fixed onto a boat, so that the wind will push the boat along a yacht with white sailshoist/lower the sails (=put the sails up or down)2 → set sail3 → under sailExamples from the Corpus
sail• For these boats a sail which allows them to compete more evenly under handicap rules has obvious advantages.• A further use of carbon rod is for sail battens to control flutter, or to improve sail shape.• It was like a captain blowing against his own limp sails.• Heroism of a different order was on the menu of three of the greatest Casanovas of the age of sail.• Several would-be sailors scoffed at the idea of a race until they actually set sail.• What's the launch schedule of the test solar sail and how long will it stay in orbit?• Then it occurs to us that we could raise the sails to increase our visibility.• From 1874 upon the sail was emblazoned the rampant white horse of Kent.Origin sail2 Old English segl 