aground

adverb or adjective

ə-ˈgrau̇nd How to pronounce aground (audio)
Synonyms of agroundnext
1
: on the ground
planes aloft and aground
2
: on or onto the shore or the bottom of a body of water
A ship ran aground during the storm.

Synonyms of aground

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Examples of aground in a Sentence

the villagers came to stare at the foreign ship that was aground on their beach and at the strangely dressed sailors on board
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
An organization can grow without actually scaling to match, and if leadership misses that gap, things can run aground fast. — Richard Neal, Forbes.com, 4 Aug. 2026 In the Netherlands and neighboring Germany cargo ships that ply the Rhine and its offshoots have been forced to carry significantly less freight or risk running aground in shallow navigation channels. — ABC News, 2 Aug. 2026 That ought to be advantageous for the Spaniard, who seemed too often to run aground when trapped inside in a more narrow system. — Matt Woosnam, New York Times, 21 July 2026 In July, low water levels caused a river cruise ship to run aground on the Rhine in the city of Bonn. — Laura Paddison, CNN Money, 21 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for aground

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of aground was in the 14th century

Rhymes for aground

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Browse Nearby Words

agrotype
aground
a growing belief that
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Cite this Entry

“Aground.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/aground. Accessed 6 Aug. 2026.

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Kids Definition

aground

adverb or adjective
ə-ˈgrau̇nd How to pronounce aground (audio)
: on or onto the shore or the bottom of a body of water
the ship ran aground

More from Merriam-Webster on aground

Nglish: Translation of aground for Spanish Speakers

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