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A watercraft is a vehicle
Vehicle

Vehicles, derived from the Latin word, vehiculum, are non-living means of transport. Most often they are manufactured , although some other means of transport which are not made by humans also may be called vehicles; examples include icebergs and floating tree trunks....
, vessel or craft
Craft (vehicle)

The word craft in its most common sense now is a short and definite word for a vehicle or Ship that is used for transportation on the sea, in the air or in space....
 designed to move across (or through) water
Water

Water is a common chemical substance that is essential for the survival of all known forms of life. In typical usage, water refers only to its liquid form or States of matter, but the substance also has a solid state, ice, and a gaseous state, water vapor or steam....
, including saltwater and freshwater, for pleasure, recreation, physical exercise, commerce
Commerce

Commerce is a division of trade or production, costs, and pricing which deals with the Trade of goods and service from production, costs, and pricing to final consumer....
, transport
Transport

Transport or transportation is the movement of passenger and cargo from one location to another. Transport is performed by various modes of transport, such as aviation, rail transport, road transport, ship transport, cable transport, pipeline transport and space transport....
 and military missions. It is derived from the term "craft
Craft (vehicle)

The word craft in its most common sense now is a short and definite word for a vehicle or Ship that is used for transportation on the sea, in the air or in space....
" which was used as term to describe all types of water going vessels. (The term craft has since been expanded to include all types of vessels which travel on water (watercraft), in air (aircraft) and in space (spacecraft).)

Most watercraft would be described as either a ship
Ship

A ship is a large watercraft that floats on water. Ships are generally distinguished from boats based on size. Ships may be found on lakes, seas, and rivers and they allow for a variety of activities, such as the ferry or cargo ships, fishing, cruise ship, Coast guard, and warship....
 or a boat
Boat

A boat is a watercraft of modest size designed to float or plane on water, and provide transport over it. Usually this water will be inland or in protected coastal areas....
.






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A watercraft is a vehicle
Vehicle

Vehicles, derived from the Latin word, vehiculum, are non-living means of transport. Most often they are manufactured , although some other means of transport which are not made by humans also may be called vehicles; examples include icebergs and floating tree trunks....
, vessel or craft
Craft (vehicle)

The word craft in its most common sense now is a short and definite word for a vehicle or Ship that is used for transportation on the sea, in the air or in space....
 designed to move across (or through) water
Water

Water is a common chemical substance that is essential for the survival of all known forms of life. In typical usage, water refers only to its liquid form or States of matter, but the substance also has a solid state, ice, and a gaseous state, water vapor or steam....
, including saltwater and freshwater, for pleasure, recreation, physical exercise, commerce
Commerce

Commerce is a division of trade or production, costs, and pricing which deals with the Trade of goods and service from production, costs, and pricing to final consumer....
, transport
Transport

Transport or transportation is the movement of passenger and cargo from one location to another. Transport is performed by various modes of transport, such as aviation, rail transport, road transport, ship transport, cable transport, pipeline transport and space transport....
 and military missions. It is derived from the term "craft
Craft (vehicle)

The word craft in its most common sense now is a short and definite word for a vehicle or Ship that is used for transportation on the sea, in the air or in space....
" which was used as term to describe all types of water going vessels. (The term craft has since been expanded to include all types of vessels which travel on water (watercraft), in air (aircraft) and in space (spacecraft).)

Most watercraft would be described as either a ship
Ship

A ship is a large watercraft that floats on water. Ships are generally distinguished from boats based on size. Ships may be found on lakes, seas, and rivers and they allow for a variety of activities, such as the ferry or cargo ships, fishing, cruise ship, Coast guard, and warship....
 or a boat
Boat

A boat is a watercraft of modest size designed to float or plane on water, and provide transport over it. Usually this water will be inland or in protected coastal areas....
. However, there are a number of craft
Craft (vehicle)

The word craft in its most common sense now is a short and definite word for a vehicle or Ship that is used for transportation on the sea, in the air or in space....
 which many people would consider neither a ship nor a boat, such as: canoe
Canoe

A canoe is a small narrow boat, typically human-powered, though it may also be powered by sails or small electric or gas motors. Canoes usually are pointed at both bow and stern and are normally open on top, but can be covered....
s, kayak
Kayak

A kayak is a small human-powered boat. It typically has a covered deck, and a cockpit covered by a spraydeck. The kayak was used by the native Ainu people, Aleuts and Eskimo hunters in sub-Arctic regions of northeastern Asia, North America and Greenland....
s, raft
Raft

A raft is any flat floating structure for travel over water. It is the most basic of boat design, characterized by the absence of a hull . Instead, rafts are kept afloat using any combination of buoyant materials such as wood, sealed barrels, or inflated air chambers....
s, barge
Barge

A barge is a flat-bottomed boat, built mainly for river and canal transport of heavy goods. Most barges are not self-propelled and need to be towed by tugboats or pushed by towboats....
s, catamaran
Catamaran

A catamaran is a type of multihulled boat or ship consisting of two hull s, or Vaka s, joined by some structure, the most basic being a frame, formed of Aka s....
s, hydrofoil
Hydrofoil

A hydrofoil is a boat with wing-like airfoils mounted on struts below the hull . As the craft increases its speed the hydrofoils develop enough lift for the boat to become foilborne - i.e....
s, windsurfers, surfboard
Surfboard

Surfboards are elongated platforms used in the sport of surfing. They are relatively light, but strong enough to support an individual standing on them while riding a Ocean surface wave....
s (when used as a paddle board), jet skis, underwater robots
Robot

A robot is a virtual or mechanical artificial agent. In practice, it is usually an Electromechanics which, by its appearance or movements, conveys a sense that it has Intention or Agency of its own....
, seaplane
Seaplane

A seaplane is a fixed-wing aircraft capable of takeoff and Water landing on water. Seaplanes are usually divided into two categories: floatplanes and flying boats....
s, and torpedo
Torpedo

Note: Prior to 1900, in naval usage "torpedo" could also refer to what today is called a naval mine. For that usage, see naval mine.The modern torpedo is a self-propelled explosive projectile weapon, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater toward a target, and designed to detonate on contact or in proximity t...
es.

Although ships are typically larger than boats, the distinction between those two categories is not one of size per se.
  • Ship
    Ship

    A ship is a large watercraft that floats on water. Ships are generally distinguished from boats based on size. Ships may be found on lakes, seas, and rivers and they allow for a variety of activities, such as the ferry or cargo ships, fishing, cruise ship, Coast guard, and warship....
    s typically are large ocean-going vessels. Boat
    Boat

    A boat is a watercraft of modest size designed to float or plane on water, and provide transport over it. Usually this water will be inland or in protected coastal areas....
    s are smaller and travel most often on inland or coastal waters.
  • A rule of thumb
    Rule of thumb

    A rule of thumb is a principle with broad application that is not intended to be strictly accurate or reliable for every situation. It is an easily learned and easily applied procedure for approximately calculating or recalling some value, or for making some determination....
     says "a boat can fit on a ship, but a ship can't fit on a boat", and a ship usually has sufficient size to carry its own boats, such as lifeboat
    Lifeboat (shipboard)

    A lifeboat is a small watercraft carried on a ship to provide a means of emergency evacuation in the event of a disaster aboard the ship. Lifeboats may be rigid or inflatable vessels; the inflatable type are sometimes referred to as raft....
    s, dinghies
    Dinghy

    A dinghy is a type of small boat, often carried or towed by a larger vessel. The term can also refer to dinghy racing or recreational Dinghy sailing....
    , or runabout
    Runabout (boat)

    A runabout is any small motorboat holding between four and eight people, well suited to moving about on the water. Runabouts can be used for racing, for pleasure activities like fishing and water skiing, or as a ship's tender for larger vessels....
    s.
  • Local law
    LAW

    LAW may refer to:* Anti-tank warfare, e.g. the US Army M72 LAW or the British Army LAW 80*Palestinian Society for the Protection of Human Rights ...
     and regulation may define the exact size (or the number of mast
    Mast (sailing)

    The mast of a sailing ship is a tall, vertical, or near vertical, spar, or arrangement of spars, which supports the sails. Large ships have several masts, with the size and configuration depending on the style of ship....
    s) that distinguishes a ship from a boat.
  • Traditionally submarine
    Submarine

    A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below water. It differs from a submersible, which has only limited underwater capability....
    s were called "boats", perhaps reflecting their cramped conditions: small size reduces the need for power, and thus the need to surface or snorkel for a supply of the air that running diesel engines requires; in contrast, nuclear-powered submarines' reactors supply abundant power without consuming air, and such craft are large, much roomier, and classed as ships.
  • A ship is any floating craft that transports cargo for the purpose of earning revenue; in that context, a passenger ship's "cargo" is its passengers. However, neither fishing boats nor ferrie
    Ferry

    A ferry is a form of transport, usually a boat or ship, used to carry passengers and their vehicles across a body of water. Ferries are also used to transport freight and even railroad cars....
    s are considered ships, though both carry cargo (their catch of the day or passengers) and ferries carry lifeboats.


The term "watercraft" (unlike such terms as aircraft
Aircraft

An aircraft is a vehicle which is able to flight by being supported by the air, or in general, the atmosphere, of a planet. Examples include balloons, airplanes and helicopters....
 or spacecraft
Spacecraft

A spacecraft is a Craft or machine designed for spaceflight. On a sub-orbital spaceflight, a spacecraft enters outer space then returns to the Earth....
) is rarely used to describe any specific individual object: Rather the term serves to unify the category that ranges from jet skis to Aircraft carrier
Aircraft carrier

An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a navy force to project air power great distances without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations....
s.

Examples of watercraft

  • Boat
    Boat

    A boat is a watercraft of modest size designed to float or plane on water, and provide transport over it. Usually this water will be inland or in protected coastal areas....
  • Ship
    Ship

    A ship is a large watercraft that floats on water. Ships are generally distinguished from boats based on size. Ships may be found on lakes, seas, and rivers and they allow for a variety of activities, such as the ferry or cargo ships, fishing, cruise ship, Coast guard, and warship....
  • Canoe
    Canoe

    A canoe is a small narrow boat, typically human-powered, though it may also be powered by sails or small electric or gas motors. Canoes usually are pointed at both bow and stern and are normally open on top, but can be covered....
  • Raft
    Raft

    A raft is any flat floating structure for travel over water. It is the most basic of boat design, characterized by the absence of a hull . Instead, rafts are kept afloat using any combination of buoyant materials such as wood, sealed barrels, or inflated air chambers....
  • Submarine
    Submarine

    A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below water. It differs from a submersible, which has only limited underwater capability....
  • Seaplane
    Seaplane

    A seaplane is a fixed-wing aircraft capable of takeoff and Water landing on water. Seaplanes are usually divided into two categories: floatplanes and flying boats....


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