A type of sailing boat or barge chiefly used on rivers and in coastal waters; a lighter (lighter, n.1). Now historical.

A large boat of the barge kind: see quots. local.

An open flat-bottomed schooner-rigged vessel or two-masted sailing barge, of a type used in North America and the Caribbean. Now historical.

(a) U.S. a short-masted vessel designed to be towed; (b) a flat-bottomed vessel rigged as a topsail schooner.

A sailing barge rigged with such a sail. Also more fully spritsail barge. Cf. spritty, n.

A spritsail barge.

Esp. on the Thames and the coasts around its estuary: a sailing barge rigged with a spritsail (spritsail, n. 2). Also more fully spritty barge. Cf. Th…

(a) in informal and jocular use = sense 1; also occasionally an adult sailor; (b) a sailing-barge(man).