Scow

Part of speech: noun, verb

Definitions

1. A flat-bottomed boat with a broad, blunt bow used chiefly for transporting bulky goods or dredging in shallow waters
2. A wide, shallow vessel typically employed to carry heavy loads like coal or sand across short distances in calm waters
3. A simple, flat-hulled craft designed for hauling cargo or performing work tasks in shallow rivers, harbors, or canals

Etymology: The English "scow" came across the North Sea from Dutch, where "schouw" named a similar flat-bottomed vessel. The Dutch word is the more useful clue to what the boat was built for: heavy, slow, and shallow-draft, designed to carry loads that would swamp a more elegant craft. That practical purpose stayed attached to the English word, which is why it still names the broad, blunt barges that haul gravel, sand, and other bulky cargo up rivers and harbours. The same blunt, shallow hull made the boat useful for dredging, and the verb sense follows naturally from that work. To scow is to carry goods in such a vessel or to clear silt from a channel, so the noun and verb share one set of tasks rather than two separate histories.

Synonyms: barge, lighter, flatboat