# ferry

> English word · Verb · IPA /ˈfɛɹ.i/ · frequency rank #6,904

## Definitions
1. To carry; transport; convey.
2. To move someone or something from one place to another, usually repeatedly.
3. To carry or transport over a contracted body of water, as a river or strait, in a boat or other floating conveyance plying between opposite shores.
4. To pass over water in a boat or by ferry.

## Etymology
From Middle English ferien (“to carry, convey, convey in a boat”), from Old English ferian (“to carry, convey, bear, bring, lead, conduct, betake oneself to, be versed in, depart, go”), from Proto-West Germanic *farjan, from Proto-Germanic *farjaną (“to make or let go, transfer, ferry”), from Proto-Indo-European *per- (“to bring or carry over, transfer, pass through”).
Cognate with Dutch veren (“to ferry”), German dialectal feren, fähren (“to row, sail”), Danish færge (“to ferry”), Faroese, Icelandic ferja (“to ferry”), Norwegian Bokmål ferge, ferje (“ferry”), Norwegian Nynorsk ferja, ferje, ferju (“to ferry”), Swedish färja (“to ferry”), Gothic 𐍆𐌰𐍂𐌾𐌰𐌽 (farjan, “to sail, row”). Related to fare.

## Easily confused with
- **fry** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ferry-vs-fry)
- **fey** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ferry-vs-fey)
- **fury** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ferry-vs-fury)
- **fray** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ferry-vs-fray)
- **Frey** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ferry-vs-frey)
- **forty** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ferry-vs-forty)
- **fiery** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ferry-vs-fiery)
- **furry** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ferry-vs-furry)
- **foray** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ferry-vs-foray)
- **flurry** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ferry-vs-flurry)
- **Fleury** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ferry-vs-fleury)
- **fer** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fer-vs-ferry)
- **fear** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fear-vs-ferry)
- **fern** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fern-vs-ferry)
- **Farr** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/farr-vs-ferry)
- **fears** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fears-vs-ferry)
- **fairy** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fairy-vs-ferry)
- **feral** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/feral-vs-ferry)
- **fermi** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fermi-vs-ferry)
- **feely** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/feely-vs-ferry)

## Common misspellings (6)
`efrry`, `ferryy`, `fery`, `feryr`, `fferry`, `frery`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/ferry