I. ˈferē, -ri verb
( -ed/-ing/-es )
Etymology: Middle English ferien, from Old English ferian to carry, bring, convey; akin to Old High German ferien, ferren to transport, convey, Old Norse ferja to transport, ferry, Gothic farjan to travel in a boat; frequentatives from the root of Old English faran to go, travel — more at fare
transitive verb
1.
a. : to convey over a river or other body of water by boat
ferried himself across the river
ferry troops from ship to shore
ferry supplies out to the island
b. : to cross (as a river) by a ferry
whether they swim, ford, or ferry the river
2.
a. : to convey from one place to another : transport
official cars could ferry the delegates over to the … reception — A.J.Liebling
had to ferry a rare book across the Atlantic — Bernard Kalb
b. : to fly (an airplane) from the factory or other shipping point to the designated delivery point or from one base to another
ferry large planes to overseas bases
c. : to transport (as across an ocean) in an airplane
our domestic airlines … ferry high-ranking military personnel between the United Nations — Congressional Record
intransitive verb
: to pass over water in a boat or by a ferry
reached Hoboken late … and ferried across to New York — G.A.Hamid
ferry across the river
II. noun
( -es )
Usage: often attributive
Etymology: Middle English ferie, fery, probably from Old Norse ferja, from ferja, v.
1. : a place where persons or things are carried across a river or other body of water in a boat
rowed the traveler over the ferry
2.
a. : a service for carrying usually on schedule persons, animals, vehicles, or goods across a ferry on a boat
the opening of the new bridge and the termination of the ferry
b. : an organized service and route for flying airplanes especially across a sea or continent for delivery to the user
the Atlantic ferry to British bases
c. : air transportation of persons or things that operates regularly between two points
via the air ferry that carries tourists and their cars to the island
a ferry plane
3. : ferryboat
take the passenger and automobile ferry across the lake
the railway ferry operating on the cross-channel route
4. : a franchise or right to operate as a common carrier a ferry service across a body of water