liveaboard

English

Etymology

live +‎ aboard.

Adjective

liveaboard (not comparable)

1. Of a boat: designed or modified to allow people to live on board.
2. Of a person: living on board a boat.

Noun

liveaboard (plural liveaboards)

1. (US) A person who lives on a boat.
   • 1975, From Tiller to Typwriter: The Rudder, volume 91, page 227:

     “We′re going to move aboard, sail around the world and do some writing,” the letter goes. “How are our chances?” It′s a common question from readers who know that my husband and I support our liveaboard life through writing and photography.

   • 1978, San Diego Magazine, page 110:

     This marina is the closest to the ocean and has a surprisingly liberal liveaboard policy (10 percent of the total population; children, pets, okay).

   • 2000, David Schaefer, Sailing to Hemingway′s Cuba, page 40:

     Pat and Kelly′s was the haven for the liveaboard community and had acquired a legendary reputation for a salty ambiance involving a couple of parrots, a raccoon, dogs and independent liveaboards who had little time for established governments.

   • 2008, Zoe Simpson, A Matter of Degree, Fossil-Imprints, UK, page 132,

     ‘None of the boats around you have liveaboards, do they?’ put in Mum.

2. (US) A boat designed or modified to allow people to live on board, compared to similar boats which do not have this feature.
   • 1999, John Newman, Michael Newman, Scuba Diving & Snorkeling for Dummies, page 219:

     Liveaboards come in all kinds of shapes and sizes: monohulls, catamarans, and trimarans, from less than 30 feet to over 100. A liveaboard serves as hotel, restaurant, and dive shop all in one — and sometimes even as a photoprocessing lab, too.

Usage notes

• The term is not normally used for houseboats, as it is assumed that they are already designed for this use.