Word.ws English Dictionary

set sails

set sails is the alternative form of set sail.

Meaning of set sail

Verb

set sail (third-person singular simple present sets sail, present participle setting sail, simple past and past participle set sail)

  1. To depart on a voyage by boat or ship.
    • We set sail for the Caribbean.
    Synonyms:
    put out
    1. (literal) To spread and arrange the sails of a sailboat or sailing ship for the purpose of putting out.
      • The sailors of the regatta are going to wait out this weather before they set sail.
    2. (figuratively) To do the analogous counterpart on a vessel with any other means of propulsion, such as steaming.
      • A Navy task force is expected to set sail shortly.

Forms of set sails

third-person singular presentsets sails
present participlesetting sails
past participleset sails
pastset sails

Questions about set sails

What is set sails the alternative form of?
Set sails is the alternative form of set sail.

Words near set sails in the dictionary

  1. set point theory
  2. set points
  3. set pulses racing
  4. set right
  5. set sail
  6. set sails
  7. set screw
  8. set screws
  9. set shot
  10. set shots
  11. set sights

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: set sails (page history and authors); set sail (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this entry: “set sails.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/set_sails. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.