Underway, or under way, is a nautical term describing the state of a vessel which is unconstrained from horizontal translational movement relative to the water and the ground. "Way" arises when there is sufficient water flow past the rudder of a vessel that it can be steered. A vessel is said to be underway if it meets the following criteria: * It is not aground * It is not at

anchor An anchor is a device, normally made of metal, used to secure a vessel to the bed of a body of water to prevent the craft from drifting due to wind or current. The word derives from Latin ', which itself comes from the Greek (). Anch ...

* It has not been made fast to a

dock The word dock () in American English refers to one or a group of human-made structures that are involved in the handling of boats or ships (usually on or near a shore). In British English, the term is not used the same way as in American Engl ...

, the shore, or other stationary object. If a vessel is adrift and not being propelled by any instrument or device, it is said to be ''underway, not making way.'' "Under weigh" is a variation, coming from folk etymology, first used in 1749. "Under way" is likely from the Dutch ''onderweg'' or Middle Dutch ''onderwegen'' (lit. "under" or "among the ways"). Weigh is also a synonym for hanging or dangling, so that the process of raising an anchor, which causes it to hang at the end of the anchor-rope or chain is called “weighing heanchor” which leads to confusion between weigh and way, since both are pronounced identically.Merriam-Webster Mobile Dictionary, 2015, entries for "under weigh" and "under way".

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