swing at anchor

verb

To remain in port for a prolonged period of time without sailing.

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

verbswing at anchor (third-person singular simple present swings at anchor, present participle swinging at anchor, simple past and past participle swung at anchor)

present singular third person swings at anchor · participle present swinging at anchor · participle past swung at anchor · past swung at anchor

  1. boat; or other vessel; boat; or other vesselnauticalTo remain in port for a prolonged period of time without sailing.

    Aaand any idea of asking for reinforcements was put off by the likely candidates: even-more-obsolete ironclad vessels and coastal-defense units which were swinging at anchor across the bay.

    2019 March 13, Drachinifel, 9:20 from the start, in The Russian 2nd Pacific Squadron - Voyage of the Damned, archived from the original on 16 Dec 2022
Cite this entry
APA

swing at anchor. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/swing%20at%20anchor

MLA

“swing at anchor.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/swing%20at%20anchor. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “swing at anchor,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/swing%20at%20anchor.

Source: swing at anchor on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.