Whats the difference between a boat and a ship?

boat rhymes with moat and coat and bloat and goat ship rhymes with lip and dip and rip and kip also ships are more expensive

Size matters

A "boat" is a hole in the water into which you throw money. A "ship" is a much bigger hole in the water into which you throw money. I think that clears things up.

Well, on my last vacation aboard the infamous cruise boat S.S. J Edgar Hoover, we noticed many sail ships floating around in the harbor. We watched Loveship on TV for a little while before going outside and cherrishing our friendboats. When we got back we had found more than enough food to keep us in boat shape for the rest of the winter. And then a tug ship pulled us to shore.

A ship is a big boat... but a boat is not a ship!

Among sailing vessels, the distinction between ships and boats is that a ship is a square-rigged craft with at least three masts, and a boat isn't. With regard to motorized craft, a ship is a large vessel intended for oceangoing or at least deep-water transport, and a boat is anything else. But that's too much to remember. Try this: ships have to be big enough to carry boats, and boats have to be small enough to be carried by ships.

Terminology of snobby sailors.

Ship, vessel that is buoyant in the water and used to transport people or cargo from one place to another via rivers, lakes, or oceans. Traditionally, ships were distinguished from boats by size—any buoyant vessel small enough to fit on board a ship was considered a boat. However, common usage has blurred the distinction between boats and ships, and today the difference between them is arbitrary.

You can paddle a boat