barge

barge — verb

1. to move quickly into a room, building, or crowd by knocking against people or ob

1.verbintransitiveC1
Definition

to move quickly into a room, building, or crowd by knocking against people or objects, showing no regard for politeness or for those around you.

Example

Saoirse barged through the crowded subway car without saying excuse me.

barge + through + place; rude movement

Two reporters barged into the courtroom before the judge had finished speaking.

barge + into + place

Common collocations
  • barge into the room
  • barge through the door
  • barge past someone
  • barge ahead
  • barge in uninvited
Synonyms
  • shove

    focuses on the physical push, not the act of entering

  • push

    more neutral and broader; barge always implies rudeness

  • muscle in

    informal; suggests forcing your way into a group or activity

Antonyms
  • tiptoe

    to move quietly and carefully, the opposite of barging

Grammar Patterns

barge + into/through/past/across + place

barge + adverb (in, out, ahead)

Usage Note

Almost always followed by a directional preposition or adverb (into, through, past, in, out, ahead). The subject is normally a person, and the action carries a strong negative judgement of rudeness or impatience.

Common Mistakes

He barged the room.
He barged into the room.
this verb needs a preposition like 'into', 'through', or 'past'.
She barged her bag onto the seat.
She slammed her bag onto the seat.
'barge' describes the person moving rudely, not throwing objects.

2. to move heavy goods such as coal, gravel, or timber from one place to another us

2.verbtransitiveC2
Definition

to move heavy goods such as coal, gravel, or timber from one place to another using a flat-bottomed canal or river boat.

Example

Coal was barged down the Thames to power stations on the southern coast.

passive: be barged + down + waterway

The company barges sand and gravel from the quarry to the building site every Tuesday.

barge + cargo + from/to

Common collocations
  • barge cargo down the river
  • barge coal
  • be barged from the port
  • barge along the canal
Synonyms
  • ferry

    can move people or goods; less specific to flat boats and bulk cargo

  • haul

    any heavy transport, by truck, ship, or train

  • ship

    general transport by sea or large vessel; not limited to inland water

Grammar Patterns

barge + something + along/down/up + waterway

Usage Note

Frequently used in the passive (be barged from/to/down/up). The object is almost always bulk cargo — coal, sand, gravel, timber, grain — rather than people or fragile items.

Common Mistakes

They barged the passengers across the lake.
They ferried the passengers across the lake.
use 'ferry' for people; 'barge' is for heavy goods.

barge — noun

Word family

  • bargee
    nounC2
  • barging
    nounC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

All four words describe forceful movement, but they differ in what they emphasise and how rude they sound. 'Push' is the most neutral: you can push a door, a button, or a child on a swing without any negative meaning. 'Shove' adds physical roughness — you shove someone with your hands or shoulder, often in anger, but it doesn't always mean entering a place. 'Barge' is special because it combines both: a person moves into or through a place AND knocks people aside, with a clear tone of rudeness or impatience. 'Muscle in' is informal and figurative — you muscle in on a deal or conversation, not through a doorway. Compare: 'She pushed the cart' (neutral), 'She shoved her brother' (rough), 'She barged into the meeting' (rude entrance), 'She muscled in on the project' (uninvited involvement).

barge ↗shove ↗push ↗muscle in ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • barge captain
  • barge traffic
  • canal barge
  • coal barge
  • river barge

Adverbs

Phrases

  • barge in uninvited
  • tow a barge
  • live on a barge

Prepositions

Etymology

Late LatinOld FrenchMiddle EnglishModern English

The word came into English from Old French 'barge', meaning a small sailing ship, which itself traced back to Late Latin 'barga' or 'barica'. For centuries it referred to any small boat, especially one used on rivers. The verb meaning 'to move rudely or push your way through' grew up much later, in the late 1800s, as a slang image: a person crashing through a crowd as clumsily as a heavy, slow barge bumping into a riverbank.