Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

miss the boat

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.59 in modern English

Syllables: mis-s the boat
IPA

18

Scrabble Score

11

Letters

2

Syllables

9

Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To fail to take advantage of an opportunity; to overlook or be too late to pursue an option or course of action.

Intransitive verb

Example Sentences

"The price discount ended yesterday and I just missed the boat on a great deal."
"As for food delivery technology, our company missed the boat, the harbor, and the ocean."
"[Father:] How about you? Any kids? [Miller:] Yeah, no. I missed that boat."

Etymology

Allusion to failing to catch a boat in time, effectively “missing” the boat. Popular since the 1920s.

Usage

Intransitive verb

Inflected Forms

misses the boat (present, singular) missing the boat (participle, present) missed the boat (participle, past) missed the boat (past)

Synonyms

that ship has sailed miss out

Questions

What does miss the boat mean?: To fail to take advantage of an opportunity; to overlook or be too late to pursue an option or course of action.
Where does miss the boat come from?: Allusion to failing to catch a boat in time, effectively “missing” the boat. Popular since the 1920s.

How to pronounce miss the boat

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