canoeing

IPA/kəˈnuːɪŋ/
KK[kənˈuɪŋ]IPA/kəˈnuːɪŋ/

canoeing — noun

1. the leisure pursuit or competitive sport of crossing lakes, rivers, or coastal w

1.nounB1
Definition

the leisure pursuit or competitive sport of crossing lakes, rivers, or coastal water by paddling a slim, lightweight, double-pointed boat with a single-bladed paddle.

Example

Henrik went canoeing on the lake every Saturday morning during the summer.

common pattern: go + canoeing + on + water

Adina took up canoeing after she moved to a small town beside the river.

collocation: take up canoeing

Common collocations
  • go canoeing
  • take up canoeing
  • white-water canoeing
  • canoeing trip
  • canoeing club
  • canoeing course
Synonyms
  • kayaking

    very similar; uses a closed-deck boat and a double-bladed paddle

  • paddling

    broader and more casual; covers any small-boat travel powered by a paddle

  • boating

    general term; includes motorboats and sailing, not only paddle craft

Grammar Patterns

go canoeing

be good at canoeing

canoeing on/down + water

Usage Note

Almost always uncountable: 'I love canoeing', not 'a canoeing'. Subject is normally a person or group; the surrounding water is named with 'on' (lakes, calm rivers) or 'down' (a flowing river: 'canoeing down the Wye'). Frequently appears in the fixed pattern 'go canoeing', alongside other outdoor pursuits like 'go hiking' and 'go fishing'.

Common Mistakes

We did a canoeing yesterday afternoon.
We went canoeing yesterday afternoon.
'canoeing' is uncountable, and the standard verb is 'go', not 'do' with an article.
She is good at canoe.
She is good at canoeing.
to talk about the activity itself, use the '-ing' form; 'canoe' alone is the boat.
They are canoeing down the mountain.
They are canoeing down the river.
canoeing happens on water, not on land or hills.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All four involve moving across water with human power, but the boat and the feel are different. 'Canoeing' uses an open-topped canoe and a single-bladed paddle that you switch from side to side; the paddler usually kneels or sits high. 'Kayaking' uses a kayak — a smaller, enclosed boat where you sit low with your legs inside, and the paddle has a blade at each end. The two are often confused, but kayaking feels more like wearing the boat, while canoeing feels more like riding in one. 'Paddling' is the broad umbrella term that covers both, plus any other small-boat-by-paddle activity, and is the safest choice when you don't know which boat is involved. 'Rafting' is something else again: a group of people share an inflatable raft down fast, white water, often with a guide. Compare: Adina took up canoeing on the calm lake; her brother prefers kayaking through narrow river gorges; their cousins booked a rafting weekend on the Colorado.

canoeing ↗kayaking ↗paddling ↗rafting ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • go canoeing
  • take up canoeing
  • white-water canoeing
  • canoeing and kayaking

Prepositions

  • canoeing on
  • canoeing down
  • canoeing with
  • canoeing in

Etymology

TaínoSpanishFrenchEnglish

'Canoeing' is the gerund form of the verb 'canoe', formed in English in the 1800s as the boat became a popular leisure craft. The boat-name 'canoe' itself was borrowed by Spanish explorers in the late 1400s from 'canoa', a word in the Taíno language of the Caribbean. Spanish 'canoa' passed into French 'canot' and into English in the 1500s, where the spelling later settled as 'canoe'. Adding the '-ing' ending turned the verb into a noun for the activity, in the same pattern as 'fishing', 'hiking', and 'sailing'.