Word.ws English Dictionary

setting sail

setting sail is the present participle and gerund 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.

Questions about setting sail

What is setting sail the present participle and gerund of?
Setting sail is the present participle and gerund of set sail.

Words near setting sail in the dictionary

  1. setting pulses racing
  2. setting right
  3. setting room
  4. setting rule
  5. setting rules
  6. setting sail
  7. setting sails
  8. setting sights
  9. setting someone's teeth on edge
  10. setting store by
  11. setting straight

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: setting sail (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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