main-truck

"Main" refers to the mainmast, whereas a truck on another mast may be called (on the mizzenmast, for example) "mizzen-truck".

But oh! shipmates! on the starboard hand of every woe, there is a sure delight; and higher the top of that delight, than the bottom of the woe is deep. Is not the main-truck higher than the kelson is low?

1851 November 14, Herman Melville, “chapter 9”, in Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, →OCLC:

I told him about everything I could think of; and what I couldn't think of he did. He asked about six questions during my yarn, but every question had a point to it. At the end he bowed and thanked me once more. As a thanker he was main-truck high; I never see anybody so polite.

1913, Joseph C[rosby] Lincoln, chapter IV, in Mr. Pratt’s Patients, New York, N.Y., London: D[aniel] Appleton and Company, →OCLC:

(nautical) On a wooden mast, a circular disc (or sometimes a rectangle) of wood near or at the top of the mast, usually with holes or sheaves to reeve signal halyards; also a temporary or emergency place for a lookout.

isomärssy

nautical: circular disc at or near the top of main mast


floaty

en-adj

floaty (comparative floatier, superlative floatiest)

floatier (comparative)
floatiest (superlative)

From float (noun or verb) + -y (suffix meaning ‘inclined to’ forming adjectives). Compare Middle English floti, floty (“of a place: well supplied with water”).

kelluva

tending to float on a liquid or rise in air or a gas — see also buoyant

I then told my Lord of Eſſex that mine vvas a floaty ſhip and vvell appointed for that ſervice; […]

a. 1610 (date written), Francis Vere, “The Calis-journey”, in William Dillingham, editor, The Commentaries of Sr. Francis Vere, Being Diverse Pieces of Service, wherein He had Command, […], Cambridge, Cambridgeshire: […] John Field, printer to the famous University [of Cambridge], published 1657, →OCLC, page 28:

The extream length of a Ship makes her unapt to ſtay, eſpecially if ſhe be floatie and vvant ſharpneſſe of vvay forvvard.

a. 1612 November 16 (date written; Gregorian calendar), Walter Raleigh, “[Sir Walter Raleigh’s Letters.] Sr. Walter Raleigh's Letter to Prince Henry, Touching the Model of a Ship.”, in Remains of Sir Walter Raleigh; […], London: […] William Sheares […], published 1661, →OCLC, page 253:

Girdling the ship would make her one of the finest ships in the whole universe, for it would make her much more floatier and carry her guns higher, and she would bear the better sail and be a better and securer ship to receive shot, and I believe it will not prejudice her sailing.

1672 April 15 (date written; Gregorian calendar), Nicholas A[ndrew] M[artin] Rodger, quoting John Narbrough, “Great Frigates: Ships 1649–1714”, in The Command of the Ocean: A Naval History of Britain 1649–1815, Allen Lane in association with the National Maritime Museum, published 2014, →ISBN, page 218:

[H]e had been concerned in a Collier, but did not care to be concerned in a Ship that drevv ſo much VVater as Fourteen Foot and a half; but if he vvould buy a Floaty Ship, ſuch an one as he could recommend to him at Yarmouth, he vvould be concerned vvith him, and go 100 l. vvith him, and begin the Trade vvith him aſſoon as he pleaſed.

1729 March 23 (Gregorian calendar), George Collcott, Robert Jones, The Joint and Separate Account or Narrative of George Collcott, and Robert Jones, Mariners, Relating to what Passed at Their Several Meetings with Others, about the Affair of Dunkirk, [London]: [Nathaniel Rich], →OCLC, page 2:

The reason of my particularizing, and making choice of the Vigilant is, that she is the most Floaty Ship of her Class in this Harbour.

1775 October 10, Molyneux Shuldham, “European Theatre, Aug. 11, 1775 – Oct. 31, 1775 [Rear Admiral Molyneux Shuldham to Philip Stephens]”, in William Bell Clark, editor, Naval Documents of the American Revolution, volume 2, Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, published 1966, →OCLC, page 754:

Tending to float on a liquid or to rise in air or a gas; buoyant.

(nautical, archaic) Of a ship: having a shallow draft (the depth from the waterline to the bottom of a vessel's hull), and thus drawing less (that is, floating higher in) water.


knockabout

We sailed our knockabout around Cape Cod.

(sailing) A small sailboat lacking a bowsprit, of a type found primarily in the Massachusetts area.


powder hoy

(obsolete, nautical) A vessel, often painted red and carrying a red flag, that carried gunpowder to a man-of-war.


steam train

The early Underground trains were essentially ordinary steam trains that just happened to be running below the streets in the middle of London.

2012, Andrew Martin, Underground Overground: A passenger's history of the Tube, Profile Books, →ISBN, page 33:

"But if so, why do you see so many young children on steam trains - apart, that is, from being dragged along by their fathers, or grandfathers?
"I think they enjoy them because they are simply so different, so mechanical, so hot, oily and clanky, so dirty, so 'analogue' in a digital world. They are everything modern life tries to extirpate in favour of silence, smoothness and cleanness. Kids love that.

2022 February 23, Benedict le Vay, “Part of rail's past... present... and future”, in RAIL, number 951, page 56:

(rail transport) A train pulled by a steam locomotive.


MPD

en-noun

MPD (countable and uncountable, plural MPDs)

motive power depot
motive power depot#English

(rail transport, countable) Initialism of motive power depot.

(aviation, travel industry) Initialism of multi-purpose document.


foretop

From Middle English fore-top, for-top, equivalent to fore- + top.

His station was in the fore-top, and often from there he looked down, with the contempt of a man destined to shine in the midst of dangers, at the peaceful multitude of roofs cut in two by the brown tide of the stream, while scattered on the outskirts of the surrounding plain the factory chimneys rose perpendicular against a grimy sky, each slender like a pencil, and belching out smoke like a volcano.

1903, Joseph Conrad, chapter 1, in Lord Jim:

(nautical) A platform at the top of the foremast, supported by the trestle trees.

keulamärssy

nautical: platform at the top of the foremast


trackwork

The train is going to be delayed by ten minutes due to trackwork.

A small number of weekday and weekend possessions will also be required on June 20-21, September 5-6, and between December 19-March 2021, but will coincide with when there will already be a limited (or no) service into London King's Cross in conjunction with the extensive trackwork taking place at the terminus.

2020 April 8, Paul Stephen, “ECML dive-under drives divergence”, in Rail, pages 44–45:

(rail transport) Construction or maintenance of railroad tracks

The advantages of this policy were twofold - the operation of m.u. trains only, with their lighter axle load, would allow the trackwork and underbridges to be simpler and lighter in construction; and speeds up to 150 m.p.h. could more easily be achieved than with conventional locomotive-hauled trains.

1963 October, G. Freeman Allen, R. K. Evans, “The Japanese National Railways and the New Tokaido Line”, in Modern Railways, page 240:

At present the principal exercise in resignalling and new trackwork involves the Pickering area.

1979 August, Michael Harris, “A line for all reasons: the North Yorkshire Moors Railway”, in Railway World, page 412:

(rail transport) The tracks and associated equipment of a railway line.


drillship

(nautical) Any vessel fitted with drilling equipment


battlewagon

It made no difference that the battlewagon had been commissioned in 1921 and the DE in 1944, or that the battleship's skipper was a regular captain

2000, Edward P. Stafford, Little Ship, Big War: The Saga of DE343, page 281:

(military) A heavily-armed combat vehicle.

A heavily-armed combat vehicle.
A battleship.


afterguard

There were times when the whole crew refused their duty; and we of the afterguard were twice got under arms—being the first time that ever I bore weapons—in the fear of mutiny.

1889, Robert Louis Stevenson, chapter IX, in The Master of Ballantrae, Cassell:

Yet from something in the outline and carriage, Billy took him to be, and correctly, one of the afterguard.

1924, Herman Melville, chapter 12, in Billy Budd, London: Constable & Co.:

(historical, nautical) The seaman or seamen stationed on the poop or after part of a ship, to attend the after-sails.

This is his sixth Cup campaign but his first as skipper, a position he inherited after the helmsman Russell Coutts, Butterworth’s longtime alter ego in the afterguard, bolted from Alinghi in 2004.

2007 July 3, Christopher Clarey, “A Familiar Foe Blocks New Zealand’s Path”, in New York Times:

(sailing) The members of a yacht's crew who attend to the aft sails


lubber's hole

(nautical) A hole through the platform surrounding the upper part of a ship's mast, through which one may climb to go aloft.


double-ended

step back

rail transport: having a driver at each end

(rail transport, of a train) Having a locomotive at each end.

British locomotives, like most European ones, are double-ended, general purpose machines, intended to be suitable for a variety of duties, and on occasion to work in multiple with each other.

1961 May, B. A. Haresnape, “Design on the railway: Part Three”, in Trains Illustrated, page 303:

(rail transport, of a multiple unit, or diesel or electric locomotive) Having a driving cab at each end.

(rail transport, of a train or multiple unit) Having a driver at each end.


mastman

“I just said to the boys that when Australia won in Newport, they were 3-1 down, and we all know what happened there,” said Matt Mason, Team New Zealand’s mastman.

2007 July 1, Christopher Clarey, “Alinghi Within One Victory of America’s Cup”, in New York Times:

(nautical, sailing) A sailor who is charged with tending the halyards and other lines near the mast


multitrack

Having or involving more than one track.

(railways) Of a railway line: having multiple, parallel tracks.


beltline

He also envisioned a car with a high beltline and exaggerated forms that visually suggested power, and at the same time promised solidity and security.

2007 May 27, Phil Patton, “From a Bad Marriage, Pretty Babies”, in New York Times:

(automotive) The imaginary line marking the upper end of the lower body of an automobile, running just below the bottoms of the windows


midengine

The R8’s midengine design echoes that of Audi’s dominant R8 racecar[…].

2007 May 20, Ezra Dyer, “Growling at the Exotics’ Door”, in New York Times:

(automotive) Of a design in which the engine of an automobile is placed between the rear and front axles


(automotive) an eight-wheeled vehicle with eight-wheel drive, each wheel has powered drive. (Abbreviation of 8 drive wheels on 8 wheels.)


passagemaker

(nautical) A vessel designed for, or capable of, making a long-distance voyage.


haul off

en-verb

haul off (third-person singular simple present hauls off, present participle hauling off, simple past and past participle hauled off)

hauls off (present singular third-person)
hauling off (participle present)
hauled off (participle past)
hauled off (past)

(nautical) To alter course so as to get farther away from an object.


unbanked

However, it was recently made obvious, both that the B.R./Sulzer Type 4s can comfortably negotiate the bank without help on the normal express train formations of this route, and also that the Western Region wants to eliminate the expense of providing bankers.

1961 December, “Unbanked trains on the Lickey”, in Trains Illustrated, page 711:

(rail transport, rare) Of a train, not having the assistance of a banker (etymology 3) when climbing a steep grade (or bank).


newbuild

(US, nautical) A newly constructed vessel.


helideck

(nautical) A platform (on a vessel or offshore structure) allowing helicopters to land and take off.


driveline

(automotive) The drivetrain minus the engine and transmission


SSRN

(US, military, nautical, obsolete) Sub Surface Radar Nuclear - a nuclear-powered radar picket submarine


backload

backload (third-person singular simple present backloads, present participle backloading, simple past and past participle backloaded)

backloads (present singular third-person)
backloading (participle present)
backloaded (participle past)
backloaded (past)

(transport) To load (cargo, shipment, etc.) after unloading has been completed.


mainbrace

(nautical) The rope (or sheet) used to control the main yard. The main yard is the spar set across the mast, from which the mainsail is hung.


splice the mainbrace

splice the mainbrace (third-person singular simple present splices the mainbrace, present participle splicing the mainbrace, simple past and past participle spliced the mainbrace)

splices the mainbrace (present singular third-person)
splicing the mainbrace (participle present)
spliced the mainbrace (participle past)
spliced the mainbrace (past)

From splice + mainbrace. Splicing the mainbrace, a heavy piece of running rigging that supported the main yard, was a skilful and arduous task, so that the men responsible would be rewarded with an extra tot of rum. Nowadays, a ceremonial order to pour a drink for a ship's company.

(nautical, idiomatic) To have an alcoholic drink.


OAL

(travel, aviation) Initialism of other airline.


binliner

* (train): Blend of bin + Freightliner. The train sense is a pun on the name of the rail freight company Freightliner.
* (rubbish bag): bin + liner

Freightliner class '66' locomotive No. 66562 approaches the site of Launton station with the 10.55 a.m. Calvert to Bristol Avon binliner empties on 15August 2008.

2013, Stanley C. Jenkins, Martin Loader, Oxford, Bletchley & Bedford Line Through Time, Amberley Publishing Limited, →ISBN:

Freightliner Class 66 No. 66514 eases the 6M07 Roxby–Pendleton empty binliner through Agbrigg, Wakefield.

2014, Paul Manley, British Freight Trains, Amberley Publishing Limited, →ISBN:

Freightliner Green Team No. 66565 is seen passing the now electrified Manchester Victoria while working the 6J44 Brindle Heath–Dean Lane binliner refuse train.

2015, Ross Taylor, General Motors Type 5: Class 66 Locomotives, Amberley Publishing Limited, →ISBN:

(UK, rail transport) A freight train carrying household rubbish.


liftgate

But Ford loaded that car up with options, including […] a power liftgate and heated second-row seats ($825).

2007 September 30, Christopher Jensen, “The Rerunning of the Bulls”, in New York Times:

(automotive) A closure at the rear of a vehicle, or rear door, that can be raised to access the back of a vehicle.


grice

grice (third-person singular simple present grices, present participle gricing, simple past and past participle griced)

grices (present singular third-person)
gricing (participle present)
griced (participle past)
griced (past)

Unknown, possibly from Richard Grice, the first champion trainspotterhttp://books.google.co.uk/books?id=rdU1xtIWJz0C&q=grice+trainspotter&dq=grice+trainspotter&hl=en&sa=X&ei=afhsT5ChFe-R0QWF8K3HBg&redir_esc=y, alternatively perhaps a humorous representation of an upper-class pronunciation of grouser (“grouse-shooter”)https://web.archive.org/web/20120313071637/http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/gricer. In either case the derivation could be direct or a back-formation from gricer.

Many people joined the railways because the 'carrot' of a staff pass was a considerable attraction, whether for family travel or to grice at extremely low cost.

1999 March 29, Tony Polson, “Re: Do all UK rail staff get free unlimited Eurostar travel?”, in uk.railway (Usenet):

We can also roganise photo charters, large group footplate courses and gricing holidays [...]

2005 August, The Railway Magazine, volume 151, number 1252, IPC Business Press, page 55:

Trainspotters may be mocked by the outside world, but they don't take criticism lying down: the language of gricing is notable for its acidic descriptions of outsiders.

2010, Adam Jacot de Boinod, “Gricer's Daughter”, in I Never Knew There Was a Word For It, →ISBN:

(UK, rail transport, slang) to act as a trainspotter; to partake in the activity or hobby of trainspotting.


District

The District seems complacently salubrious. It is green on the Tube map, an inoffensive colour. It has not one but two bridge crossings of the Thames, which seems greedy when you think that no other [underground] line has even one.

2012, Andrew Martin, Underground Overground: A passenger's history of the Tube, Profile Books, →ISBN, page 60:

(rail transport) The District Line of the London Underground, originally known as the District Railway.


paddleboat

It also caused major problems for businesses which relied on the lake and river, including the city's paddleboat operator and the river cruise company.

2009 February 12, “Weir gate fault drains city lake”, in Herald Sun:

(nautical) A boat propelled by a paddle wheel

Naval sources report the amazing rescue of two 65-year-old women who were found floating 400 miles off the coast of California — in a tiny paddleboat!

1996 April 2, Lisa Merakis, “Two women found floating in paddleboat — 400 miles from shore!”, in Weekly World News, →ISSN, page 33, [satirical]:

Outdoors, guests can take a paddleboat and pedal their way around shaded waterways filled with swans and Nile perch

2010, Anne Anderson, Insiders' Guide® to the Greater Tampa Bay Area (Insiders' Guide Series), Rowman & Littlefield, →ISBN, page 70:

(nautical, US, Canada, Australia) a pedalo


spinout

Sulayman al-Shulukhi, left, races his modified Subaru Impreza every weekend night and delights in describing wrecks and spinouts.

2009 March 8, Robert F. Worth, “Saudis Race All Night, Fueled by Boredom”, in New York Times:

(automotive) A skid that results in a vehicle rotating such that its longitudinal axis is no longer aligned with its direction of linear motion.


moonroof

ja-r

ムーンルーフ (mūnrūfu)

→ Japanese: ムーンルーフ (mūnrūfu)

From moon + roof, patterned on sunroof. Coined by the Ford Motor Company in the 1970s.

(automotive) A sunroof that has a clear glass panel, rather than being opaque, so that light can enter the vehicle even when the roof is closed.


ground clearance

en-noun

ground clearance (plural ground clearances)

(automotive) The measured distance between a level surface and the lowest part (other than tires or equivalent) of the bottom of a vehicle surmounting that surface.


monoreme

(nautical) A galley with a single row of oars on each side


boost

Unknown. The verb is first recorded 1815; the noun, 1825. Compare Scots boost (“to move; drive off; shoo away”), bost, boast (“to threaten; scold”), Middle English boosten, bosten (“to threaten”).

cog

(automotive engineering) A positive intake manifold pressure in cars with turbochargers or superchargers.


IMDG

(shipping) Initialism of International Maritime Dangerous Goods (code): a code designed to standardize safety of dangerous goods being transported by sea.


country beam

For your own safety and that of others, follow the suggestion in the verse:
“Use country beam
When roads are clear,
Use traffic beam
When cars are near.”

1940, Ralph A. Richardson, Optics and Wheels, General Motors Corporation, p. 25

(automotive, dated) A headlight setting intended for quiet country roads at night.


traffic beam

(automotive, dated) A headlight setting intended for roads with traffic on them at night.


TPO

en-noun

TPO (countable and uncountable, plural TPOs)

travelling post office
travelling post office#English

(rail transport, countable) Initialism of travelling post office.


sail-plan

(nautical) A diagram showing the number and possible arrangements and sizes of the sails for a sailing vessel.


beartrap

(law enforcement, automotive, traffic) A radar trap used by police to catch speeders.

(aviation, nautical) A device that traps a probe on a rotorcraft, securing it to the helicopter deck of a vessel.

(aviation, nautical) A system of rotorcraft recovery aboard watercraft in heavy sea states, which uses the beartrap device to land securely and transport the aircraft into the hangar.


slip sheet

(shipping) A strong, thin pallet-sized sheet of plastic or fiberboard used to transport heavy items.


SYP

(rail transport) The station code of Sai Ying Pun in Hong Kong.


BAM

Baikal–Amur Mainline
w:Baikal–Amur Mainline

(rail transport) Initialism of Baikal–Amur Mainline.


two-second rule

(transport, idiomatic) A rule of thumb for safe driving by which a driver must maintain a two-second distance from the vehicle in front.


nonhybrid

At the same time, if you, a manufacturer, continue building fleets of nonhybrid gas guzzlers, you are condemning yourself, your employees and shareholders to oblivion.

2008 May 28, Thomas L. Friedman, “Truth or Consequences”, in New York Times:


beakhead

(nautical) A protruding part of the foremost section of a sailing ship.

galioon

protruding part at the bow of a sailing ship


Marconi rig

Named after the inventor of radio, Guglielmo Marconi, because the wires that stabilize the mast of such a rig reminded observers of the wires on radio masts.


KERS

(sports, automotive) Acronym of kinetic energy recovery system. — an electric generation, storage, and propulsion system used in Formula One, which generates electricity during slow down, stores energy in batteries, and boosts acceleration with electric drive motors assisting the gasoline engine.


commodore admiral

commodore admiral (plural commodore admirals)

(US, military, nautical, historical) a flag officer of a rank between a captain and a rear admiral, having a O7 NATO rank scale equivalency.


CADM

commodore admiral
commodore admiral#English

(US, military, nautical, historical) Abbreviation of commodore admiral.


COMO

(US, military, nautical) Abbreviation of commodore.


fleet captain

(military, nautical) A captain in command of a fleet, convoy, or flotilla.

(military, nautical) The holder of a non-flag naval rank above that of captain and below that of the admiralty ranks, having an O7 NATO rank scale equivalency.


yeoperson

yeoperson (plural yeopersons or yeopeople)


dieselize

en-verb

dieselize (third-person singular simple present dieselizes, present participle dieselizing, simple past and past participle dieselized)

dieselizes (present singular third-person)
dieselizing (participle present)
dieselized (participle past)
dieselized (past)

(US, transitive, rail transport) To replace steam or electric train service on a particular route or network with diesel-engined trains.


derailer

From derail + -er. Doublet of derailleur.

(rail transport) Synonym of derail: A device placed on railway tracks in order to cause a train to derail.


athwartship

athwartship bulkheads; an athwartship berth

The Nan-Shan had an athwartship bunker which, being frequently used as cargo space, communicated by an iron door with the fore ’tween-deck.

1902, Joseph Conrad, chapter 14, in Typhoon, New York: Putnam, page 107:

(nautical) Oriented across the vessel sideways, i.e. in a direction at right angles to the fore-and-aft line of the vessel.


sea shanty

(nautical, music) A work song that sailors historically sang in rhythm to their movement.


APM

en-noun

APM (countable and uncountable, plural APMs)

(transport, countable) Initialism of automated people mover.


pushrod

The cam-within-a-cam concept has existed for decades, but perfecting it for production might just add another decade to the life of the pushrod engine.

2007 January 14, Don Sherman, “Making Modern Horsepower the Old-Fashioned Way”, in New York Times:

mechanical engineering
mechanical engineering

(mechanical engineering) A rigid reciprocating rod that, by its movement, transmits force to actuate a mechanism.

(automotive) A rod in a piston engine that actuates rocker arms above the cylinder head.


cutlass bearing

cutlass bearing (plural cutlass bearings)

When you replace a drive shaft on your boat, it is also a good idea to replace the cutlass bearing where the drive shaft exits the boat.

(nautical) A bearing on the drive shaft of a vessel, usually made of brass with an inner grooved rubber lining that is lubricated by the surrounding water entering the grooves as it rotates. It is a variant of the stave bearing.


FE

(automotive, sports) Abbreviation of Formula E.


unmast

en-verb

unmast (third-person singular simple present unmasts, present participle unmasting, simple past and past participle unmasted)

unmasts (present singular third-person)
unmasting (participle present)
unmasted (participle past)
unmasted (past)


gennaker

/ˈd͡ʒɛnəkə(ɹ)/

(nautical) A sail having characteristics of a genoa and a spinnaker.


air ride

(transport) The smooth ride in a vehicle resulting from an active pneumatic suspension system, instead of springs or a hydraulic system.

(transport) An active pneumatic suspension system for a vehicle.


shift one's tides

shift one's tides (third-person singular simple present shifts one's tides, present participle shifting one's tides, simple past and past participle shifted one's tides)

shifts one's tides (present singular third-person)
shifting one's tides (participle present)
shifted one's tides (participle past)
shifted one's tides (past)

(dated, nautical) To record the variations of the tide and the positions of the sun and moon using a nautical almanac and sextant to determine the location and phase of the moon and to calculate the relative effect of the tides on the navigation of the ship.


singletrack

(rail transport) Alternative form of single-track (“having only one track”)


LMS

London, Midland and Scottish Railway
w:London, Midland and Scottish Railway

(UK, rail transport) Initialism of London, Midland and Scottish Railway.


ro-ro

en-noun

ro-ro (countable and uncountable, plural ro-ros)

roll-on roll-off
roll-on roll-off#English

(transport, nautical) Abbreviation of roll-on roll-off.


roll-on roll-off

Stranraer Harbour station was the traditional connection for ferry services. But as competition from roll-on/roll-off traffic intensified P&O Ferries started a new service from Cairnryan in 1973, which reduced the shipping distance.

2020 November 18, “Industry Insider: Improving rail connectivity”, in Rail, page 68:

(transport, nautical) Of a form of marine vessel which allows wheeled vehicles to be driven on and off.


ogin

Unclear. Among various suggestions, it may be a corrupted form of hogwash (“swill”), of noggin (“a small measure of an alcoholic drink”), or of ocean.

Nobody has yet put up a suitable argument for *never* going into the ogin to help someone who can't raise their own head above the surface...

2004 April 6, DannyBoy, “Man Overboard Statistics....”, in uk.rec.sailing (Usenet):

(UK, chiefly nautical and navy) A large body of water including the sea or the ocean.


MRU

Matunga Road railway station
w:Matunga Road railway station

(rail transport) The station code of Matunga Road railway station in India.


iron horse

(transport) A railroad steam locomotive.


pump-jet

(nautical) A marine system that creates a jet of water for propulsion of watercraft.

vesisuihkumoottori

a marine system that creates a jet of water for propulsion


supplemental restraint system

supplemental restraint system (plural supplemental restraint systems)

(automotive) Any of several restraining systems in a vehicle, such as an airbag, in addition to the seatbelts


stock vehicle

(automotive) A vehicle that is kept and maintained to legal specifications.


GMDSS

(nautical, aviation) Initialism of Global Maritime Distress and Safety System. (an international set of safety procedures, equipment types, and communication protocols)


AIS

AIS (countable and uncountable, plural AISs or AISes or AIS's)

AISs (plural)
AISes (plural)
AIS's (plural)

/ˈeɪ ˈaɪ ˈɛs/

Having spotted an unknown contact on radar, the navigation officer attempted to identify the vessel using the ship's AIS.

(nautical) Initialism of automatic identification system, as an element of the Global Marine Distress and Safety System GMDSS.


restripe

en-verb

restripe (third-person singular simple present restripes, present participle restriping, simple past and past participle restriped)

restripes (present singular third-person)
restriping (participle present)
restriped (participle past)
restriped (past)

When a business, State or local government agency, or other covered entity restripes a parking lot, it must provide accessible parking spaces as required by the ADA Standards for Accessible Design. ADA Design Guide 1 - Restriping Parking Lots

(automotive) To change the space markings in a parking lot.


hitchment

(shipping) The marrying of two or more portions of one shipment that originate at different locations, moving under one bill of lading, from one shipper to one consignee.


isophase light

(nautical) A rhythmic light (in a lighthouse) in which all durations of light and darkness are equal.


middle body

In those experiments the different models used had varying lengths of parallel middle body distributed equally forward and abaft the midship section.

1919, William McEntee, “The Propulsion of Cargo Ships with Parallel Middle Body”, in Journal of the American Society of Naval Engineers, volume 31, page 263:

(nautical) The part of a vessel adjacent to the midship section having a uniform or nearly uniform cross-section, usually referred to as the parallel middle body.


forebody

From Middle English forebodi, forbody, equivalent to fore- + body.

The wear-off is intensified in heavily loaded areas, such as the ice belt in the ship's forebody, and during operations in heavy ice and especially in presence of soil or sand mixed in ice.

1995, D. S. Sodhi, Northern Sea Route Reconnaissance Study: A Summary of Icebreaking Technology, →ISBN, page 22:

(nautical) The part of the vessel forward of amidships.


afterbody

After the diagonals are drawn in the plane of the projection, the ribbands may be laid down in the horizontal plane, and from thence all the other frames may be laid down in the plane of projection, in the very same manner that the horizontal ribbands and the frames for the afterbody were laid down.

1754, Mungo Murray, chapter 6, in A treatise on ship-building and navigation, page 45:

As well as could be judged by looking down through the water under the counters, there was no injury whatever to the afterbody of the ship.

1882, John Wilson Danenhower, Lieutenant Danenhower's Narrative of the "Jeannette", page 32:

The extension of slender-body theory to account for the interaction of the afterbody with vortex sheets shed upstream has been carried out by Newman and Wu (1973) in the general case where the local lateral velocity of the body differs from the downwash of the trailing vortices.

1977, John Nicholas Newman, chapter 7, in Marine Hydrodynamics, →ISBN, page 343:

(nautical) The part of a vessel abaft midships.


lower deck

(nautical) The deck of a ship immediately above the hold.

podpalubí

(nautical, by extension) The members of a ship's company who are not officers.


cuny

I early found my way to ships to become a sea-cuny.


marshrutka

From Russian маршру́тка (maršrútka), colloquial shortening of маршру́тное такси́ (maršrútnoje taksí, “routed taxicab”), from маршру́т (maršrút, “route”), referring to a planned route that something follows, and такси́ (taksí).

(transport) A share taxi in the CIS countries, the Baltic states, and Bulgaria. The role of the modern marshrutka is similar to that of the minibus in other countries, except that some implementations of marshrutka allow passengers to stand.


Bermuda rig

(nautical) A sailing rig consisting of a single stayed mast with a fore-and-aft rigged mainsail on a boom and a jib or genoa on the forestay


gullwing

(nautical) Synonym of goose wing (sail position).


MMR

Manmad Junction railway station
w:Manmad Junction railway station

(rail transport) The station code of Manmad Junction railway station in India.


cable-laid

(nautical, of rope) Consisting of three or four hawser-laid ropes twisted together left-handed (turning in an anticlockwise direction).


en-noun

B5 (countable and uncountable, plural B5s)

(automotive) A motor vehicle fuel blend of 95% diesel and 5% biodiesel


tribar

The rear end's signature tribar taillamps, which light up in sequence to signal turns, are rendered in eye-catching LED panels.

2013 December 6, Lawrence Ulrich, “Time for an Equestrian Transformation”, in New York Times:

(automotive) The arrangement of the signature stacked lights on a Ford Mustang.


(automotive) A motor vehicle fuel blend of 90% diesel and 10% biodiesel


under sail

A ship under full sail.

(idiomatic, nautical) With sails unfurled; powered by the wind.


wheelspin

wheelspin (usually uncountable, plural wheelspins)

A computer detects wheelspin and reduces power.

2009 August 23, Dexter Ford, “Slip-Sliding Suspended”, in New York Times:

(automotive) The spinning of the wheels of a vehicle on the surface of the ground with greatly reduced friction and little movement of the vehicle, especially when starting.

буксуване

the accidental or deliberate spinning of the wheels of a vehicle


shinkansen

shinkansen (plural shinkansen or shinkansens)

shinkansen (plural)
shinkansens (plural)

From Japanese 新(しん)幹(かん)線(せん) (shinkansen, literally “new trunk line”).

ja-r

(rail transport) A Japanese high-speed railway line.

East Japan Railway Co., known as JR East, this week unveiled its newest luxury shinkansen cars featuring ashiyu, in which passengers can soak their tired feet while speeding through the beautiful, mountainous, hot-spring-rich region.

2014 July 2, Yoko Sudo, “Luxury Shinkansen Train to Feature Foot Baths”, in The Wall Street Journal:

(rail transport) A high-speed passenger train which runs on such a line; a bullet train.


OLE

The problem started with damage to overhead line equipment (OLE - the railway's electrification system), which halted a Great Western Railway service.

2024 August 21, Philip Haigh, “Stranded trains: problems for passengers and operators”, in RAIL, number 1016, page 52:

(rail transport, UK) Overhead line equipment.


mainyard

The sails were split, the mainyard shivered, the wind blowing fresh, the night setting in; and all our chance was to make for Corfu--or, as F. pathetically called it, 'a watery grave.'

A long line of red and white flags extends from the top of the mainyard to the helm and streamers flutter from the mastheads.

1914, E.H. Aitken, Concerning Animals and Other Matters:

(sailing) The yard of the mainmast, from which the mainsail is hung

grand' vèrgue

the yard of the mainmast, from which the mainsail is hung


stunsail

And, when running into more sufferable latitudes, the ship, with mild stun’sails spread, floated across the tranquil tropics […]

1851 November 14, Herman Melville, “chapter 41”, in Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, →OCLC:


destroyer escort

en-noun

destroyer escort (plural destroyer escorts)

(US, military, nautical, historical) A type of warship, lighter in armor and armament, and slower than a destroyer, originally used for convoy escort during World War II; now considered a frigate.


destroyer leader

destroyer leader (plural destroyer leaders)

(military, nautical) a warship, a type of destroyer used to lead a division, flotilla or squadron at sea and in combat, a heavy destroyer variant with larger displacement for command and control.


barkentine

There was a barkentine in Halifax harbor. That was a thing worth looking at in the year 1933.

1937 August, Theodore G. Roberts, “Lay Aft, Mr. Dutton!”, in Boys' Life, volume 27, number 8, page 16:

The William Olsen, a San Francisco barkentine, kedged out into the lagoon as fast as possible, and through the tearing sheets of rain I glimpsed other vessels reaching for a holding-ground.

1937, Frederick O'Brien, Mystic Isles of the South Seas.:

She is passenger on the square-rigged barkentine Speedwell, now lying off the coast of Virginia.

1990 May 18, Patrick Daugherty, “Reading: Fare for Flying”, in Chicago Reader:

(sailing) Alternative spelling of barquentine


JRM

Abbreviation of Serbo-Croatian Jugoslavenska Ratna Mornarica (“Yugoslav War Navy”).

der

(military, nautical) ship prefix for ship names of the Yugoslav navy


AOR

en-noun

AOR (countable and uncountable, plural AORs)

auxiliary replenishment oiler
auxiliary replenishment oiler#English

(US, military, nautical) Initialism of auxiliary replenishment oiler.


clew-garnet

(nautical) A rope attaching to the clew (lower corner) of a sail, used to furl it.

sometimes used the pen name Mayn Clew Garnett


gabbart

(nautical) A lighter or barge; a small one-masted sailing or coasting vessel designed for inland navigation.


lay day

(nautical) A day in which a vessel may load or unload a cargo without paying an extra charge.


loblolly

loblolly (countable and uncountable, plural loblollies)

From Yorkshire dialect lob (“boil”, literally “bubbling up”) + dialect lolly (“broth”).


deadeye

(nautical) A wooden disk having holes through which the lanyard is passed, used for tightening shrouds.

jufferblok

nautical: wooden disk for tightening shrouds


forrard

Here and there an adventurous genius coins a phrase for the benefit of posterity,--as we once heard a mate order a couple of men to "go forrard and trim the ship's whiskers," to the utter bewilderment of his captain, who, in thirty years' following of the sea, had never heard the martingale chains and stays so designated.

1858, Various, The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 2, Issue 12, October, 1858:

Off, here, Masser Mile--larboard bow, well forrard; look sharp and soon see him, yourself, sir."

1863, James Fenimore Cooper, Miles Wallingford:

The old chap who had just come off the look-out, had returned forrard again, and I was alone on that part of the deck.

1909, William Hope Hodgson, The Ghost Pirates:


gauntleted

The opportunity was also taken to remove one of the few examples of gauntleted tracks in this country, interlacing the down fast and slow lines over the bridge.

1960 November, “Talking of Trains: Selby swing bridge”, in Trains Illustrated, page 647:

The narrow gauge is gauntleted with the up main line through a tunnel beneath the town and then turns away to its separate station.

1961 November, H. G. Ellison, P. G. Barlow, “Journey through France: Part One”, in Trains Illustrated, page 668:

(rail transport) Having a gauntlet (overlapping parallel rail tracks).


flying bridge

(nautical) A (usually open) area on top of, or at the side of, a ship's pilothouse, serving as an operating station for the officers in good weather or when manoeuvring in port.


squill-gee

After the holy-stone, comes the squill-gee; a wooden instrument like a hoe, but with a face, broad and flat, and lined with leather: the decks are partly dried with it; and the operation is completed by the swabs, articles formed by tying a number of loose yarns together, now dashed, by their handles, with violence about the deck.

1829, George Jones, Sketches of Naval Life, with Notices of Men, Manners and Scenery, on the Shores of the Mediterranean, in a Series of Letters from the Brandwine and Constitution Frigates, volume 1, page 97:

(nautical) A tool used for cleaning the decks of ships.


Union Flag

(nautical, British) The flag flown on ships of the government of Great Britain or the United Kingdom.


wye switch

When the wye switch is opened the home signal is automatically set at danger and the distant signal at caution.

1909, Interstate Commerce Commission, Accident Adjustment Report, page 30:

(rail transport, US) A railroad switch, having a Y shape, in which one line splits into two lines that diverge at equal angles.


astern of

The ship left a wake astern of her.


shear legs

Apart from its unique public viewing gallery, the depot features 40-ton capacity shear legs which will be complemented shortly by an overhead lifting crane.

1979 August, Michael Harris, “A line for all reasons: the North Yorkshire Moors Railway”, in Railway World, pages 412, 414:

(nautical) A form of derrick, consisting of three poles and a block and tackle, used to hoist and lower heavy weights, especially the masts of sailing ships.


green water

“When green water started coming over the flight deck, you knew you were in water. The smaller ships like the destroyers and stuff had a terrible time. When a carrier takes green water that’s a good sixty feet above the water if not more, and its rough.” James Spence WWII Veteran describing June 5, 1945 typhoon, The Last Days of World War II, episode 7, The History Channel

(nautical) A large quantity of water on a ship's deck as a result of massive waves during a large storm.


Kriegsmarine

(historical, military, nautical, World War II) The navy of Nazi Germany.


sideboy

(nautical) One of an even-numbered group of seamen posted in two rows on the quarterdeck when a visiting dignitary boards or leaves the ship, historically to help (or even hoist) him aboard.


nonoperator

(rail transport) A rail worker not directly involved in the mechanical operation of trains.


fore-and-aft-rigged

(nautical, of a ship) having its main sails rigged onto spars or stays parallel to the keel

pitkittäistakiloitu

having sails rigged parallel to the keel

(nautical, of a sail) rigged in this manner


spiling

(nautical) The edge-curve of a plank or of a strake in a vessel's hull.


wheeltapper

(UK, rail transport, historical) A railway employee tasked with tapping the train's wheels with a hammer to detect cracks.


hause

A variant, like hawse (“part of a vessel's bow containing hawseholes”), of Middle English halse (“neck”); see hawse for more.


galley slave

"That is a chain of galley slaves, on the way to the galleys by force of the king's orders." "How by force?" asked Don Quixote; "is it possible that the king uses force against anyone?" "I do not say that," answered Sancho, "but that these are people condemned for their crimes to serve by force in the king's galleys."

1885, Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, chapter XXII, in John Ormsby, transl., The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha […] In Four Vols, volume I, London: Smith, Elder & Co. […], →OCLC, part I, page 346:

(historical, nautical) A slave who rows in a galley (type of ship).


damage control

damage control (countable and uncountable, plural damage controls)

(nautical) A department or group, as aboard a naval vessel, responsible for taking action to control damage caused by fire, collision, etc.

損害管制

department responsible for taking action to control damage


paravane

(nautical) A device, stabilized with vanes, towed alongside a vessel such that the cable attaching it cuts the moorings of submerged mines.

paravane

device for cutting the moorings of mines

(nautical) A towed underwater object with hydrofoils, of diverse uses.


racing jack

(automotive) A jack with a pumping action that lifts a car very quickly


plane sailing

Audio (GA)

From plane (adjective) + sailing (noun), a variant of plain sailing probably by analogy with plane chart (“(nautical) chart representing the earth in which lines of latitude and longitude are respectively shown as parallel straight lines”) or plane scale (“(chiefly nautical, obsolete) scale or ruler with markings used for calculations, especially for navigation”).

[…] I hired a Tonquineſe for about a Dollar to be my guide. This, tho but a ſmall matter, vvas a great deal out of my Pocket, vvho had not above 2 Dollars in all, vvhich I had gotten on board, by teaching ſome of our young Seamen Plain Sailing.

1699, William Dampier, Voyages and Descriptions. Vol. II. […], London: […] James Knapton, […], →OCLC, part I (His Voyage from Achin in Sumatra, to Tonquin, […]), page 90:

[…] Me[r]cators Sailing gives the correct Difference of Latitude and Longitude both; Middle Latitude Sailing, only the correct Difference of Longitude; Plain Sailing gives neither correctly; and therefore their Merits are in Proportion.

1735, Benjamin Martin, “The Use of Decimals in Plain Trigonometry, and Other Mathmatical Sciences Depending thereon”, in A New Compleat and Universal System or Body of Decimal Arithmetick, […], London: […] J[ohn] Noon, […], →OCLC, page 322:

I doubt as hovv I've ſteered by a vvrong chart, d'ye ſee—as for the matter of the ſciences, to be ſure, I knovv plain ſailing and mercator; and am an indifferent good ſeaman, […]

1760 January – 1761 December, [Tobias George Smollett], “In which the Knight Resumes His Importance”, in The Life and Adventures of Sir Launcelot Greaves. […], Dublin: […] James Hoey, junior, published 1762, →OCLC, page 78:

[W]e have determined to go by way of Lisbon, […] and so on our old route to Malta and Constantinople, if so be that Captain Kidd, our gallant commander, understands plain sailing and Mercator and takes us on our voyage all according to the chart.

1809 June 25, Lord Byron, “Letter XXXV. To Mr. Henry Drury.”, in Thomas Moore, editor, Letters and Journals of Lord Byron: With Notices of His Life, […], volume I, London: John Murray, […], published 1830, →OCLC, page 188:

(nautical) A technique for navigation using the assumption that the journey occurs over a plane or flat surface rather than the actual curved surface of the Earth, which is sufficiently accurate over short distances.


puddening

puddening (countable and uncountable, plural puddenings)

(nautical) Fibres of old rope packed between spars, or used as a fender.

кранец

fibres of old rope packed between spars, or used as a fender


banana boat

(nautical) An inflatable recreational boat meant for towing, often yellow and banana-shaped.

bananbåd

(nautical) A ship designed to transport bananas.


pull in

en-verb

pull in (third-person singular simple present pulls in, present participle pulling in, simple past and past participle pulled in)

pulls in (present singular third-person)
pulling in (participle present)
pulled in (participle past)
pulled in (past)

pull in the main sheet

(idiomatic, nautical, transitive) To tighten a sail by pulling on a rope.


galliass

[T]he greateſt of their Galliaſſes fell foule vpon another ſhip, and loſt her Rudder, ſo that guideleſſe ſhe droue vvith the tide vpon a ſhelue in the ſhoare of Callis, vvhere ſhee vvas aſſaulted by the Engliſh.

1611, Iohn Speed [i.e., John Speed], The History of Great Britaine under the Conquests of yͤ Romans, Saxons, Danes and Normans. […], London: […] William Hall and John Beale, for John Sudbury and George Humble, […], →OCLC, book IX ([Englands Monarchs] […]), paragraph 210, page 861:

(nautical) Alternative spelling of galleass


HBMS

(UK, military, nautical, obsolete) Initialism of His/Her Britannic Majesty's Ship, replaced by HMS (His/Her Majesty's Ship).


HDMS

(military, nautical) Initialism of His/Her Danish Majesty's Ship. a ship name prefix for a naval ship of the navy of Denmark

KDM

short for 'Kongelige Danske Marine', (Royal Danish Navy)


HNoMS

(military, nautical) Initialism of his/her Norwegian majesty's ship.


HNLMS

(military, nautical) Her Dutch Majesty's Ship

(military, nautical) His Dutch Majesty's Ship


HNMS

(military, nautical) His/Her Norwegian Majesty's Ship

(military, nautical) His/Her Dutch Majesty's Ship


HSwMS

(military, nautical) Initialism of His/Her Swedish Majesty's Ship; a ship prefix for a naval ship of the navy of Sweden


M/S

(nautical) Initialism of motor ship. – a ship propelled by an internal combustion engine, such as a diesel engine, in contrast to sailing ships and steamships


picard

Inherited from Middle English picard. Doublet of Picard.

Others, used commonly as fishing boats and in trade with Ireland, were “picards”, named often in the Tolsey Court books as pledges for debts, and worth about £8.

1933, E. M. Carus Wilson, “The Overseas Trade of Bristol”, in Eileen Power, M. M. Postan, editors, Studies in English Trade in the 15th Century, page 239:

Irish picards were noted as leaving Bridgewater or Minehead one day with small cargoes of salt or victuals, and returning the next or even the same day with loads of fish.

1947, Dorothy Burwash, English Merchant Shipping, 1460–1540:

Picards were very small. They were sailing lighters of some kind, primarily used to carry the catches from fishing boats at sea to port.

2015, Ian Friel, Henry V’s Navy: The Sea-Road to Agincourt and Conquest, 1413–1422, →ISBN:

(historical, nautical) A type of light, seaworthy vessel used in trade and the transport of fish in Britain and Ireland in the late medieval and early modern period.


SPAD

Coordinate term: SPAR

(rail transport, UK) Initialism of signal passed at danger.


SPAD

(rail transport, UK) An instance of a signal passed at danger.


SPAD

SPAD (third-person singular simple present SPADs, present participle SPADing, simple past and past participle SPADed)

SPADs (present singular third-person)
SPADing (participle present)
SPADed (participle past)
SPADed (past)

(rail transport, UK) To pass a signal at danger.


MTC

Montreal Transit Corporation
Montreal Transit Corporation

(transport) the Montreal Transit Corporation — the public transit corporation for the megacity and Island of Montreal; it replaced the MUCTC in 2002.

Montreal Transit Commission
Montreal Transit Commission

Montreal Tramways Co.
Montreal Tramways Co.

(transport) the Montreal Transit Commission — the public transit commission for the island and City of Montreal; it was replaced by the MUCTC in 1970, it replaced the Montreal Tramways Co. in 1950 when the latter was nationalized.

Montreal Tramways Company
Montreal Tramways Company

(transport) the Montreal Tramways Company (Montreal Tramways Co.) — the public transit company of the island of Montreal; the company was nationalized in 1950 and replaced by the Montreal Transit Commission, it was formed in 1911 by the merger of several previous companies.


AMT

Metropolitan Transit Agency
Metropolitan Transit Agency

Réseau de transport métropolitain
Réseau de transport métropolitain

(transport) AMT — the former Agence métropolitaine de transport – the Metropolitan Transit Agency; the transit agency for the MMC; now replaced by the RTM - Réseau de transport métropolitain.


MUCTC

CTCUM

Montreal Urban Community
Montreal Urban Community

(transport) the Montreal Urban Community Transit Corporation — the public transit corporation for the Montreal Urban Community; it was replaced by the MTC in 2002, it replaced the Montreal Urban Community Transit Commission in 1985.

(transport) the Montreal Urban Community Transit Commission — the public transit commission for the Montreal Urban Community; it was replaced by the Montreal Urban Community Transit Corporation in 1985, it replaced the MTC in 1970.


dualize

dualize (third-person singular simple present dualizes, present participle dualizing, simple past and past participle dualized)

dualizes (present singular third-person)
dualizing (participle present)
dualized (participle past)
dualized (past)

(transitive, road transport) To transform into a dual carriageway.


turn flukes

turn flukes (third-person singular simple present turns flukes, present participle turning flukes, simple past and past participle turned flukes)

turns flukes (present singular third-person)
turning flukes (participle present)
turned flukes (participle past)
turned flukes (past)

But come, it's getting dreadful late, you had better be turning flukes--it's a nice bed; Sal and me slept in that ere bed the night we were spliced.

1851 November 14, Herman Melville, “chapter 3”, in Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, →OCLC:


master mariner

That B. C. S., late, &c., master mariner, on, &c., at a foreign port or place called Valparaiso, in South America, then and there being the master and commander of the "Henry Clay," ...

1849, Francis Wharton, Precedents of Indictments and Pleas:

1901, Joseph Conrad, Falk: A Reminiscence,
He was a Schiff-fuhrer: Ship-conductor. That's how they call a Master Mariner in Germany. I prefer our way. The alliteration is good, and there is something in the nomenclature that gives to us as a body the sense of corporate existence: Apprentice, Mate, Master, in the ancient and honourable craft of the sea.

1987, D. J. House, Seamanship Techniques, Volume 2, chapter heading,
Certificate of Competency for Master Mariner, Class 1

(nautical) A seaman who has qualified to be a captain of a merchant ship


headsail

(nautical) Any sail (of a sailing vessel) set forward of the foremost mast.


fix it again Tony

Back-formation from Fiat, from Italian FIAT (“Fabbrica Italiana Automobili di Torino”). From the initialism; derives from the commonly perceived frequent breakdowns of Fiat vehicles when used in North America.

der

(slang, derogatory, automotive) Fiat, the Italian automaker.


headstock

The two-axle bogies, of Metro-Vick swing-link type, are of one-piece cast-steel construction with box-section side frames and headstocks.

1960 December, “The first hundred 25 kV a.c. electric locomotives for B.R.”, in Train Illustrated, page 728:

(rail transport) A transverse structural member at the extreme end of a rail vehicle's underframe, also used on some bogies.


buckler plate

(nautical) a cover over a hawsehole, used to keep spray out of the chain locker and prevent deckhands from stepping into the hawsehole.


hawsepipe

(nautical) metal pipe fitted into a hawsehole, to protect the wood


chain locker

(nautical) A space in the forward part of the ship, typically beneath the bow in front of the foremost collision bulkhead, that contains the anchor chain when the anchor is secured for sea.


RAS

(military, nautical) Initialism of replenishment at sea.


KWT

(rail transport) The station code of Kwun Tong in Hong Kong.


JOR

(rail transport) The station code of Jordan in Hong Kong.


ETH

(rail transport, UK) Initialism of electric train heat/heating.


COG

Coordinate term: SOG

(nautical) Abbreviation of course over ground.


ECU

(automotive) Initialism of engine control unit.

(automotive) Initialism of electronic control unit.

(automotive) Initialism of emission(s) control unit.


ASM

en-noun

ASM (countable and uncountable, plural ASMs)

(electromechanics, electronics, automotive) Abbreviation of asynchronous motor.


LSO

landing signal officer
w:landing signal officer

(aviation, nautical, military) Initialism of landing signal officer.


TEL

(automotive, aviation, organic chemistry) tetraethyllead (or tetraethyl lead, tetra-ethyl lead); a gasoline additive to boost octane rating


MRT

MRT (countable and uncountable, plural MRTs)

mass rail transit
mass rail transit#English

(UK, Southeast Asia, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, Thailand, India, transport, uncountable) A form of heavy-rail rapid-transit system that utilizes modern Electric Multiple Units to transport commuters between stations.

(UK, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, Thailand, India, transport, uncountable) Initialism of mass rail transit.

mass rapid transit
mass rapid transit#English

(UK, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, India, transport, uncountable) Initialism of mass rapid transit.

mass rail transport
mass rail transport#English

(UK, Singapore, Philippines, India, transport, uncountable) Initialism of mass rail transport.

mass rapid transport
mass rapid transport#English

(Singapore, Malaysia, India, Thailand, transport, uncountable) Initialism of mass rapid transport.

metro rail transport
metro rail transport#English

(India, Philippines, Singapore, transport, uncountable) Initialism of metro rail transport.

metro rapid transit
metro rapid transit#English

(UK, Singapore, India, transport, uncountable) Initialism of metro rapid transit.

metropolitan rapid transport
metropolitan rapid transport#English

(India, Thailand, South Korea, transport, uncountable) Initialism of metropolitan rapid transport.

metropolitan rapid transit
metropolitan rapid transit#English

(Thailand, India, South Korea, transport, uncountable) Initialism of metropolitan rapid transit.

metro rail transit
metro rail transit#English

(Philippines, India, transport, uncountable) Initialism of metro rail transit.

metropolitan rail transit
metropolitan rail transit#English

(Philippines, India, transport, uncountable) Initialism of metropolitan rail transit.

metro rapid transport
metro rapid transport#English

(UK, India, transport, uncountable) Initialism of metro rapid transport.

metropolitan rail transport
metropolitan rail transport#English

(India, transport, uncountable) Initialism of metropolitan rail transport.

After several years of study, the Government of Singapore in 1982 decided to implement a comprehensive mass rapid transit (MRT) system.

2000, Jian Zhao, J. Nicholar Shirlaw, Rajan Krishnan, Tunnels and Underground Structures, page 32:

The origins of the MRT are derived from a forecast by city planners in 1967 which stated the need for a rail based urban transportation system.

2008 September 25, Angela Albanese, bus570 fall 08: The Mass Rapid Transit (MRT):

Bukit Panjang residents will soon enjoy a shorter commuting time to town when Singapore’s latest MRT line, the Downtown Line 2 (DTL2), commences operations on Dec 27.

2015 December 11, Feily Sofian, Esther Hoon, The Edge Property: The impact of MRT on property prices:


interlocking tower

interlocking tower (plural interlocking towers)

(rail transport, US) A building or room that houses controls for switches.


kangaroo route

From kangaroo (“marsupial associated with Australia and with Qantas”) + route; a registered trademark of Qantas.

The old first class in the nose of the aircraft has become a sleeperette area for sixteen premium class passengers who pay ten per cent above the first class price on the Kangaroo route.

1980, International Aeronautic Federation, Interavia, volume 35, page 935:

1982, Royal Aeronautical Society. Australian Division, Royal Federation of Aero Clubs of Australia, Aircraft, Volumes 62-63, page 26,
Rolls-Royce hate to have Qantas Kangaroo Route passengers saying they never fly in the RB211-powered 747s, because these are used almost exclusively on the Pacific routes.

As the 1950s ended Qantas and BOAC saw their comfortable hold on the Kangaroo route changed forever with the emergence of Air India and India′s demand for participation in their pooling arrangement.

2010, John Gunn, Crowded Skies: Qantas 1971-1989, page 109:

(travel) An air route between the United Kingdom and Australia via Asia, especially that route flown by Qantas.


TAP

(rail transport) The station code of Tai Po Market in Hong Kong.


wheelman

For instance, the wheelman in a robbery; he doesn't intend for anyone to get killed when he pulls up in front of a liquor store so that his armed complice can rob the store.

2012, Robert K. Tanenbaum, Bad Faith, Simon and Schuster, →ISBN:

(automotive) A driver of an automobile, especially a getaway vehicle in a criminal enterprise.


waistcloth

(nautical, historical) A covering of canvas or tarpaulin for the hammocks, stowed on the nettings, between the quarterdeck and the forecastle.


transport ship

(nautical) A ship that is used to transport military personnel; a troopship.

transportskib

a ship that is used to transport military personnel


unrig

en-verb

unrig (third-person singular simple present unrigs, present participle unrigging, simple past and past participle unrigged)

unrigs (present singular third-person)
unrigging (participle present)
unrigged (participle past)
unrigged (past)

No, I have brought nothing but Ballaſt back,—made a delicious Voyage, Setter; and might have rode at Anchor in the Port till this time, but the Enemy ſurpriz'd us.— I vvou'd unrig.

1693, [William] Congreve, The Old Batchelour, a Comedy. […], 2nd edition, London: […] Peter Buck, […], →OCLC, Act V, scene i, page 43:

Some climbed the masts to unrig her, others rushed into the hold to get out the cargo, and numbers hurried to the cabin to carry off the lighter articles which it contained.

1859, W[illiam] H[enry] G[iles] Kingston, chapter 22, in Old Jack:

TRIPPING-LINE. A small rope serving to unrig the lower top-gallant yard-arm of its lift and brace, when in the act of sending it down on deck.

1867, William Henry Smyth, The Sailor's Word-Book:

[I]n bathing costumes they unrigged the boat, put away the sails, and got her up to her resting place upon the dry sand of the beach.

1957, Neville Shute, chapter 3, in On the Beach, New York: William Morrow & Co:

(nautical, transitive, intransitive) To remove the rigging from (a vessel, etc.).


rerig

rerig (third-person singular simple present rerigs, present participle rerigging, simple past and past participle rerigged)

rerigs (present singular third-person)
rerigging (participle present)
rerigged (participle past)
rerigged (past)

The Edward A. Horton, the Gloucester schooner forced into Guysborough, Nova Scotia, and stripped of its sails, is part of Gloucester lore. Six New Englanders broke into a warehouse at night, took the impounded gear, rerigged the schooner, and slipped away on the flood tide.

(nautical, transitive) To rig again; to outfit (a ship) with new rigging.


Pway

(rail transport) Abbreviation of permanent way.


ride down

ride down (third-person singular simple present rides down, present participle riding down, simple past rode down, past participle ridden down)

rides down (present singular third-person)
riding down (participle present)
rode down (past)
ridden down (participle past)

(nautical) To bear down, as on a halyard when hoisting a sail.


exhauster

There is, however, another inconvenience which can only be remedied by the use of a second exhauster, viz., the loss of pressure after the passage of the gas through the washer--a loss resulting from the obstacle presented by this appliance to the steady flow of the gas.

1884, Various, Scientific American Supplement, No. 446, July 19, 1884:

The Westinghouse type CM.38 air compressor is mounted under the main frame and the Northey rotary type exhausters are fitted one on each side of the platform at No. 1 end; [...].

1962 December, “The B.R. standard diesel-electric Type 1 locomotive”, in Modern Railways, page 381:


landing ship

(military, nautical) a sea-going military light ferry designed to assault shores that are held against them, and disembark forces directly onto the shore


brailing

During the day the brailings were rolled up and tied with tapes.

2007, Ron Pottinger, A Soldier in the Cockpit, page 13:

(nautical) Synonym of brail (“rope for trussing sails”)


turtled

Righting a turtled boat is usually difficult, since an upside-down hull is very stable and the submerged sails will resist your efforts.

1988, Derrick Fries, Start Sailing Right!, page 85:

(nautical) Capsized; turned upside-down in the water.


footrope

(nautical) a rope attached to the lower part of a sail

(nautical) a rope attached to a yard that sailors stood on to stabilize it when furling or reefing


foresheet

Tom sprang to the position which had been occupied by the spokesman of the party, and grasping the foresheet and the tiller of the boat, he soon brought her up to the wind.

1864, Oliver Optic, The Soldier Boy; or, Tom Somers in the Army:

They saw him board, neatly running the small boat under the schooner's counter; they saw the foresheet eased off and the ship run up into the wind; then the foresail dropped and the wheel lashed so that she would stand so.

1907, Stewart Edward White, Samuel Hopkins Adams, The Mystery:

(nautical) one of the sheets (ropes) that controls the foresail

tile tosaigh

one of the ropes that controls the foresail


foretopsail

(nautical) The sail draped from the foretopmast.


gantline

A moment later, I saw the man's head appear over the top. He had the tail-block slung round his neck, and the end of the gantline over his shoulder.

1909, William Hope Hodgson, The Ghost Pirates, Chapter IV:

He drew deep breath; a gantline swayed aloft
A lower topsail, hard with rope and leather,
Such as men's frozen fingers fight with oft
Below the Ramirez in Cape Hom weather.

“Now then — to the main topsail now! Tally on to that gantline. Don't stand about there!”

1914, Joseph Conrad, chapter 4, in The Niger of Narkissos:

(nautical) A line rigged to a mast, used to hoist rigging.


express train

1906, Edith Nesbit, The Railway Children, Chapter 4: The engine-burglar,
All sorts of dreadful thoughts came to her all together in one horrible flash. There were such things as express trains that went on, she supposed, for hundreds of miles without stopping. Suppose this should be one of them? How would she get home again? She had no money to pay for the return journey.

King's Messenger, 1918-1940: Memoirs of a Silver Greyhound. By George P. Antrobus, O.B.E., King's Foreign Service Messenger 1918-1940. London: Herbert Jenkins Ltd. Price 10s. 6d. net. [...] "The great European express trains have an air of mystery and romance about them. Truth to tell, this is but ill-deserved. Except over the French portion of their journey they have no right to the title of express"—he was writing of conditions before the great speed-up of the last decade— [...].

1941 October, “Railway Literature”, in Railway Magazine, page 480:

For all the attention on express trains, it's often local trains that tip the railway into congestion.

2021 June 30, Philip Haigh, “Regional trains squeezed as ECML congestion heads north”, in RAIL, number 934, page 53:

(rail transport) A train (either the service or the train itself) making limited stops.

express

referring to a named express train, for example: Riviera express, Orient express, ...


BSL

Bhusaval Junction railway station
w:Bhusaval Junction railway station

(rail transport) The station code of Bhusaval Junction railway station in India.


round-top

A man on the roundtop cried out, Au voile, a sail.

1722, Daniel Defoe, chapter 11, in Colonel Jack:

(nautical) A platform at the top of a ship's mast.


spritsail

Finding it was like to overblow, we took in our Sprit-ſail, and ſtood by to hand the Fore-ſail; but making foul Weather, we look'd the Guns were all faſt, and handed the Miſſen.

1726 October 28, [Jonathan Swift], “A Great Storm Described, the Long-Boat Sent to Fetch Water, the Author Goes with It to Discover the Country. […]”, in Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World. […] [Gulliver’s Travels], volume I, London: […] Benj[amin] Motte, […], →OCLC, part II (A Voyage to Brobdingnag), page 151:

(nautical) A form of three- or four-sided fore-and-aft sail and its rig, supporting the leech of the sail by means of a sprit.


speronara

From Italian speronara, Sicilian spirunara.

'Whilst my boat was preparing (a Maltese speronara, with a crew of twelve men, selected for their knowledge of the coast,) I wrote two letters, one to Malta, and the other to Lisbon, stating the loss of the ship.

1850, William O. S. Gilly, Narratives of Shipwrecks of the Royal Navy; between 1793 and 1849:

We had the ponente, or west-wind, all night, but the speronara moved sluggishly, and in the morning it changed to the greco-levante, or north-east.

1863, Bayard Taylor, The Lands of the Saracen:

(nautical, historical) A small, usually single-masted, sailing boat, used especially for transport between Sicily and Malta, remaining in use along the coast of Sicily until the mid-20th century.


stokehold

Yarrow's patent water tight ash pans are fitted to each boiler, to prevent the fire being extinguished by a sudden influx of water into the stokehold.

1887, Various, Scientific American Supplement, No. 598, June 18, 1887:

A plume of smoke went nearly straight up from the funnel, and now and then the clang of furnace-slice and shovel rose from the stokehold, for Mayne hoped to float the vessel next tide.

1918, Harold Bindloss, The Buccaneer Farmer:

The noise and roar of the engines was ever in my ears, and the peculiar ocean-like noise of the stokehold ... and the metallic clang of coal as it shot from shovels....

(nautical) A chamber where a ship's furnaces are stoked.

котелно

a chamber where a ship's furnaces are stoked


diesel-electric

Brush supplied shunters to industrial clients, but the first significant main line order came from the Ceylon Government Railway in 1950 for 25 diesel-electrics.

2021 June 30, David Clough, “Brush: a UK rail icon”, in RAIL, number 934, page 55:

(rail transport) A diesel-electric locomotive.


bosun's chair

boatswain's chair
boatswain's chair#English


buoy tender

(nautical) Someone charged with looking after buoys.


AHB

(UK, rail transport) Initialism of Automatic Half Barrier, a type of level crossing


shoegear

/ˈʃuːˌɡɪə(ɹ)/

Features such as trackless doors, mercury-type door interlocks, roof-mounted door fault indicator lights, rubber window glazing, improved retractable shoegear and a modified electro-pneumatic brake system designed to facilitate maintenance and improve reliability, which have proved their worth on the prototype trains, are continued in the new stock.

1960 February, “The first of London's new Piccadilly Line trains is delivered”, in Trains Illustrated, page 94:

In the third case, the need to provide retractable shoegear on the power bogies to pick up current from the third rail, and the equipment to use low-voltage supply, has complicated the design of the Eurostar trains.

1995, Colin J. Kirkland, “Locomotives”, in Engineering the Channel Tunnel, →ISBN, page 190:

Here shoegear and stepboards are refitted prior to a commissioning run conducted by the manufacturer which includes high speed and emergency brake tests.

2003, P. Hinde, J. Thompson, “Commissioning”, in International Conference on New Trains: 4-5 June 2003 at Le Meridien, York, UK, volume 2003 IMechE conference transactions, published 2004, →ISBN, The train operator's view of new train introduction, page 51:

The trains run on two additional rails and pick up current by means of shoegear making sliding contact with the conductor rails.

2006, Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Environmental Audit Committee, quoting DJ Hartland, Reducing carbon emissions from transport: Oral and written evidence, →ISBN, London Underground Power Supplies. Electric Current Flow in Conductor Rails. Savings in Energy with Low Loss Rail, page 286:

(rail transport) train equipment, usually mounted on bogies, used to transfer electric current from the third rail.


locoman

The evidence which I propose to give will deal with safety and health questions concerning all grades of enginemen, boilermen, and locomen […]

1937, H. M. Stationery off., Minutes of evidence taken before the Royal commission on safety in coal mines ..., Great Britain. Royal Commission on Safety in Coal Mines, page 753

The Lancashire Tradesmen's Association organises craftsmen, semi-skilled and unskilled workmen on the surface other than the manipulators of coal, enginemen, boilermen and locomen; it also organises skilled craftsmen underground, although some craftsmen are organised by the Lancashire Area, which seeks to organise all underground workers including craftsmen.

1948, Report of the National Executive Committee [to The] Annual Conference, National Union of Mineworkers:

As an ex-locoman of the steam days between 1954 and 1968, I would like to set right a misconception that is prevalent in some areas of the steam locomotive preservation movement.

2006, The Railway Magazine, volume 152, page 24:

The Crescent Road sheds had a favourite locomotive - Stanier 4MT tank engine 42626 (known by Bolton locomen as 'two half-dollars') - and the shed authorities quietly arranged for it to be put to one side for a few days, while the ardent schoolboys set to work cleaning it.

2023 March 8, Paul Salveson, “Fond farewells to two final trains...”, in RAIL, number 978, page 55:

(rail transport, dated) Someone who works on a locomotive.


ROKS

Republic Of Korea
Republic of Korea#English

(South Korea, military, nautical) Initialism of Republic Of Korea Ship, a warship of South Korea.


DTO

(rail transport) Initialism of director of train operations.


throughline

From through (“passing from one side of something to the other”, adjective) + line. Compare Middle English thurghline (“a brail or buntline”).

cog

(rail transport) A railway route that passengers can take without needing to change trains.


tossable

en-adj

tossable (comparative more tossable, superlative most tossable)

more tossable (comparative)
most tossable (superlative)

But both those cars are nippy, fun, willing, cinched-down, pretty tossable little cars.

2013, Wall Street Journal, "Nissan Versa Note Isn't Worth the Cost at Any Price" (October 4, 2013)

(automotive) Nimble, maneuverable, responding quickly to steering input.


fourgon

The usual composition of the L.C.D.R. train was three saloon cars of Wagons-Lits stock, with a Wagons-Lits fourgon or van at one end, while the S.E.R. train, as shown, had two saloons and the fourgon, with a 6-wheel S.E.R. brake at the other end.

1942 February, “Notes and News: The London-Paris Club Trains”, in Railway Magazine, page 53:

(rail transport) A French baggage wagon.


water column

At Carlisle, as is customary, there was a very slow stop for the engine to draw to the water column.

1943 January and February, Cecil J. Allen, “British Locomotive Practice and Performance”, in The Railway Magazine, page 16:

There could be no easy reversion to the pre-electrification timetable, as that provided for working over the Hyndland branch, which no longer existed, and new stations had come into use at Hyndland and Garscadden; moreover, water columns all along the routes concerned had been removed.

1961 March, “Talking of trains”, in Trains Illustrated, page 130:

Recent acquisitions include LMS open No 7991, formerly on the Severn Valley Railway, several wagons and a swan-necked water column.

1979 August, “Preservation Scene: Midland Railway Trust”, in Railway World, page 429:

(rail transport) A column alongside a railway track used to replenish a steam engine's water supply.


oscillometer

(nautical) A device that measures the roll (or pitch) of a ship


cat-harping

(nautical) One of the short ropes or iron cramps used to brace in the shrouds toward the masts so as to give freer sweep to the yards.


ground tackle

(nautical) equipment, such as anchors, cables, or windlasses, for mooring a vessel away from a pier or other fixed moorings.


windage

en-noun

windage (usually uncountable, plural windages)

(automotive) Drag on the crankshaft caused by oil splashing out of the sump when rotating at high speeds.

(chiefly nautical) Exposure to the wind.


bitt-heads

(nautical) The upright timbers let in and bolted to the beams or the deck, and stepped to the backbone or infrastructure of the ship.


scramble net

(nautical) A net used to allow people to climb off a ship in an emergency.


bitt-pin

(nautical) A device like a belaying pin but of heavier scantlings; a turned length of wood or metal passed through the bitts or cross-piece, used to prevent the cable from slipping off or over the bitt-heads yet removable so as to facilitate doing so.


step back

en-verb

step back (third-person singular simple present steps back, present participle stepping back, simple past and past participle stepped back)

steps back (present singular third-person)
stepping back (participle present)
stepped back (participle past)
stepped back (past)

(rail transport, of a driver at a terminal station) to depart driving the train following the train they arrived into the station driving, so as to decrease service turnaround time.


double-end

double-end (third-person singular simple present double-ends, present participle double-ending, simple past and past participle double-ended)

double-ends (present singular third-person)
double-ending (participle present)
double-ended (participle past)
double-ended (past)

(rail transport, transitive) To operate a train with a locomotive at each end.

(rail transport, transitive) To operate a train, especially a multiple unit, with a driver at each end of the train for fast turnaround times.


boatel

(nautical) A ship, normally moored alongside a quay, used as a hotel


double-ending

(rail transport) a system of operating trains with a driver at each end of the train for a fast turnaround time.


stepping back

(rail transport) a system to decrease turnaround time at terminal stations where a second driver enters the rear cab of an arriving train and departs driving the train from that end while the first driver is walking the length of the platform ready to take over the subsequent departure.


breasthook

(nautical) A horizontal timber fitted in the bows of a ship to add strength and to connect the sides to the stem.


sterndrive

(nautical) A form of marine propulsion similar to an outboard motor


forestaysail

(nautical) A triangular sail attached to the forestay.


westing

(nautical) A distance travelled westward.


foretriangle

(nautical) A triangular space on a sailing ship between the deck, foremast, and forestay.


single-track

[…]a single-track main line between Richmond, Ind., and Norwood Heights, Ohio

1942 February 1, “Pennsylvania Installs Centralized Traffic Control On 60.7 Miles of Single Track”, in Railway Signalling, Chicago, page 78:

It was once the busiest singletrack section of railway line in the country but, almost three decades after its closure, the short route which once linked Tunbridge Wells’s two stations is a ghostly presence

2013 March 1, “Fears for future of vital link between two train stations”, in The Kent and Sussex Courier, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, page 14:

On the now defunct Guildford-to-Horsham line, there was a foolproof way of avoiding collisions on singletrack lines

2016 February 18, Peter Le Feuvre, “Letter to the editor”, in The Daily Telegraph, page 17:

(rail transport) Having only a single track so that trains may only run in one direction at a time.


double-track

Determined to learn from Bouch's mistakes, they conducted a through [sic] survey of the riverbed. Having learned what they needed to know, they submitted plans for a new double-track bridge by the end of 1880.

2020 September 23, Paul Bigland, “The tragic tale of the Tay Bridge disaster”, in RAIL, page 82:

(rail transport) Having a pair of tracks in order to allow trains to pass in opposite directions.

dobbeltsporet

railways: having a pair of tracks in order to allow trains to pass in opposite directions


double-track

double-track (third-person singular simple present double-tracks, present participle double-tracking, simple past and past participle double-tracked)

double-tracks (present singular third-person)
double-tracking (participle present)
double-tracked (participle past)
double-tracked (past)

Other engineering upgrades include the reinstatement of Platform 4 at Birmingham Snow Hill, partially double-tracking the line between Ledbury and Shelwick, and freight loops between Nuneaton and Leicester.

2023 March 8, “Network News: Midlands presses for rail hub scheme”, in RAIL, number 978, page 14:

(rail transport) To provide double track.


windbound

en-adj

windbound (comparative more windbound, superlative most windbound)

more windbound (comparative)
most windbound (superlative)

(nautical) Unable to sail because of high winds, or of onshore winds.


southing

(nautical) A distance traveled southward.


downhaul

(nautical) Any rope used to haul down a sail or spar.


solebar

The underframe, which has been designed to take buffing loads of 200 tons both on the centre coupler and on the retractable side buffers, consists of two centre girders from which cantilevers project to support the solebars, which in turn carry the bodyside structure.

1951 May, “British Railways Standard Coaches”, in Railway Magazine, page 327:

The shuttle locomotive body is a conventional stress-skin monocoque structure, with longitudinal members at solebar and cantrail levels.

1995, Roger Ford, “Locomotives”, in Colin J. Kirkland, editor, Engineering the Channel Tunnel, Taylor & Francis, →ISBN, Rolling stock, page 178:

The bolster to solebar weld on one side, and the weld between the solebar and the front headstock on the other side had broken completely.

2001, A.P.Brights, N. Kirk, S. Manteghi and P.J. Murrell, edited by Brain S. Neale, Forensic engineering: the investigation of failures, Thomas Telford, →ISBN, Ladbroke Grove crashworthiness accident investigation, page 16:

[...] the original Chalice built coaches have a deep solebar, while the Keef coaches were much shallower.

2001, Peter Scott, A History of the Butlin's Railways: The Story of Billy Butlin's Amusement Park and Holiday Camp Miniature Railways, Including Other Associated Railways and Transport Systems, →ISBN, page 72:

Sometimes the door also cuts off main structural components such as the solebar or cantrail.

2005, Jan Prockat, Developing large structural parts for railway application using a fibre reinforced polymer design, Univerlagtuberlin, →ISBN, Lightweight Design, page 44:

(rail transport, UK, Australia) One of the longitudinal beams running along either side of a railway vehicle, onto which the bodywork is mounted, in passenger-carrying vehicles usually forming the side or the base of the floor.


skillygalee

Unknown and much-speculated (compare lobscouse and other fancifully-named hardy foods), but possibly Irish in root.

Breakfast was served at 8am and sometimes consisted of skillygalee, a sort of oatmeal gruel prepared in fatty water and which by the time of Trafalgar included butter and sugar.

2005, Gregory Fremont-Barnes, Steve Noon, Nelson's Sailors, Osprey Publishing, page 24:

(obsolete, nautical) A type of gruel made from oatmeal, oft-served historically in poorhouses, sailors' ships, etc.


skilly

“I would be given for supper six ounces of bread and ‘three parts of skilly.’ ‘Three parts’ means three-quarters of a pint, and ‘skilly’ is a fluid concoction of three quarts of oatmeal stirred into three buckets and a half of hot water.”

1903, Jack London, The People of the Abyss, Macmillan:

Of course unlike the officers we never got fresh bread, we got what came from barrels stored in the lower peak and under the steward's padlock. Pantiles baked brick hard, mouldy oats for skilly, dried peas for soup, embalmed pork and beef more fat and bone than meat.


midbowman

(nautical) a member of the crew who works with the mast and often packs the sails below deck.


backwind

en-verb

backwind (third-person singular simple present backwinds, present participle backwinding, simple past and past participle backwinded)

backwinds (present singular third-person)
backwinding (participle present)
backwinded (participle past)
backwinded (past)

If a sailing boat's bow is pointing too high into the wind the sails backwind.

(nautical) To deflect air into the back of a sail or of a vessel


check rail

I think it of great importance that the whole of this portion of the Brecon and Mertyr Railway, which originally was an old mineral line (the old Rumney), should be carefully examined by the Company's engineer, to ascertain if there are any other curves of 10 or 12 chains radius or less on the running lines, and that such curves should be rendered more safe, by the addition of check rails round such curves.

1869, Colonel W. Yolland, “Brecon and Merythr Railway”, in Accounts and Papers volume 21 Railways; Turnpikes; Highways; Harbours, &c., Session 10 December 1868 — 11 August 1869, Volume LIV., House of Commons, Railways, page 42:

The uniformity of the wheel diameters of diesel and electric locomotives and m.u. trains impairs the spreading of grease from one point fed by the lubricator and the growing traffic of m.u. trains and railcars has increased the need for lubrication and for check rails in certain places. [...] if necessary, they [lubricators] can be adapted to apply grease to the backs of wheels in order to lubricate the face of continuous check rails.

1962 December, “Talking of Trains: Rail and flange lubrication”, in Modern Railways, page 372:

The pressure of the flange of the leading wheel against the outer rail leads not only to excessive wear but also to risk of tyre climbing up over the rail. To minimise this risk, a check rail is fixed inside the inner rail and made parallel to it.

2000, J. S. Mundrey, “Railway Curves”, in Railway Track Engineering, 3rd edition, Tata McGraw-Hill, →ISBN, Movement of Vehicles on Curves, page 199:

The extra rail, which is called a check rail, relieves the sideways pressure of the wheels against the out rail, and prevents the wheels from mounting the outer rail

2008, John Wolfe Wolfe Barry, “Permanent Way”, in Railway Appliances, BiblioBazaar, →ISBN, Superelevation, page 58/60:

"Given the nature of the bridge and the potential consequences of a derailment, it's hardly surprising that there are orthodox check-rails all the way across the bridge.

2020 August 26, “Stop & Examine”, in Rail, page 70, about a bridge across the Irrawaddy in Burma:

(rail transport) A rail laid parallel to a running rail to guide wheels through points, rail crossings, and round curves, to reduce wear and the risk of derailments such as those due to flange climb.


deckhead

Coordinate term: bulkhead

(nautical) The underside of a deck (equivalent to a ceiling).


fairwater

(nautical) A device that improves the streamlining of a vessel.


preselector

(automotive) A manual gearbox designed so that the manual shift lever preselects the next gear to be used and a separate pedal is used to engage it, without needing to work a manual clutch.


spraydeck

(nautical) A cover, for a kayak or canoe, that prevents water entering during rough weather.


sternsheets

(nautical) The stern area of an open boat; the planking that forms the floor or seating in that area

кърмова площадка

the stern area of an open boat; the planking that forms the floor or seating in that area


waterplane

(nautical) The horizontal cross section of a vessel on a level with the waterline.


blockship

[…] the veteran paddle-steamer Gondolier was sunk as a blockship at Scapa Flow; […].

1946 September and October, “Notes and News: The War Effect on the Clyde Steamers”, in Railway Magazine, page 324:

(nautical) A vessel that is deliberately sunk in order to block a waterway (to prevent it being used by an enemy)


bellyband

From belly + band. As a Japanese article of clothing, a calque of Japanese 腹巻き (haramaki).

(nautical) A band of canvas used to strengthen a sail.


shove off

shove off (third-person singular simple present shoves off, present participle shoving off, simple past and past participle shoved off)

shoves off (present singular third-person)
shoving off (participle present)
shoved off (participle past)
shoved off (past)

(nautical) To set a boat in motion by pushing with an oar or boat-hook.


daybook

From day + book. Cognate with Dutch dagboek (“diary, journal, logbook”), German Tagebuch (“diary, journal, daybook”), Danish dagbog (“diary”), Swedish dagbok (“diary, logbook, journal, daybook”).


deadlight

(nautical) A strong (often wooden) shutter fitted over a porthole, that can be closed in bad weather to keep water out and discourage the glass windows from breaking.

(nautical) A deck prism, a device to allow light into the cabin of boat through the deck.


daggerboard

(nautical) A retractable centreboard that slides out to act as a keel.


reefpoint

(nautical) Any of a series of short ropes attached to a sail that are used to secure it when reefed.


sheeter

The Army provided a yard foreman, sheeters, loaders, and checkers to augment the railway staff of two men porters, one lad porter, and a female clerk.

1947 January and February, “Wartime Traffic at Tanfield, L.N.E.R.”, in Railway Magazine, page 47:

(rail transport) A person who put sheets (tarpaulins) on open railway wagons to keep the loads secure and dry in transit.


shantyman

(nautical, music) The sailor who sings the main line of a sea shanty (the other sailors singing the responses or choruses)


privateersman

(nautical) The captain or member of the crew of a privateer.


sailyard

From Middle English saylyerde, sailyerd, seilȝerd, from Old English seġlġyrd, seġelġyrd (“sailyard”), from Proto-West Germanic *seglagaʀdī and *seglagaʀd (“sailyard, mast”, literally “sail-rod, sail-staff”), equivalent to sail + yard (“staff, rod, stick”). Cognate with German Segelgerte.

(nautical) A yard (spar or shaft) to which the sails of a ship are bent (tied or fastened to).


light engine

After a week's manœuvrability tests at Winwick, the locomotive was to undergo three weeks' trials, light engine and loaded, between Whitchurch and Tattenhall Junction.

1960 December, “Motive Power Miscellany: London Midland Region”, in Trains Illustrated, page 767:

(rail transport) A locomotive running on its own, or with other powered locomotives, with no wagons or carriages attached.


GSA

(aviation, travel) Initialism of general sales agreement. A contact between an airline and a travel company to provide customer service in a region where the airline does not have an office.


SxS

en-noun

SxS (plural SxS or SxSes or SxS's or SxSs)

SxS (plural)
SxSes (plural)
SxS's (plural)
SxSs (plural)

utility task vehicle
utility task vehicle#English

(automotive) Abbreviation of side-by-side. (a utility task vehicle (“UTV”))


shake a cloth in the wind

en-verb

shake<,,shook,shaken> a cloth in the wind

shake a cloth in the wind (third-person singular simple present shakes a cloth in the wind, present participle shaking a cloth in the wind, simple past shook a cloth in the wind, past participle shaken a cloth in the wind)

shakes a cloth in the wind (present singular third-person)
shaking a cloth in the wind (participle present)
shook a cloth in the wind (past)
shaken a cloth in the wind (participle past)

(obsolete, nautical) To be tipsy (but not really drunk).


piss in a quill

piss in a quill (third-person singular simple present pisses in a quill, present participle pissing in a quill, simple past and past participle pissed in a quill)

pisses in a quill (present singular third-person)
pissing in a quill (participle present)
pissed in a quill (participle past)
pissed in a quill (past)

Reflective of a pirate's lack of interest in formalizing a strict plan, where piss, or urine is filling the quill, or pen, and their perceived worthlessness of a written or signatory agreement.

He is mad to think all men can't piss in a quill, nor see with his spectacles.

(obsolete, nautical, slang) To reach an agreement on a plan.


pitcher-bawd

(obsolete, nautical, slang) An elder, worn-out, or semi-retired prostitute working in a tavern, who is only desired for fetching pitchers of beer for patrons.


purser rigged and parish damned

En-au-purser rigged and parish damned.ogg

purser (“ship mate in charge of accounting for passengers aboard”) + rigged (“fixed”) + parish (“meaning church community ashore”) + damned (“forsaken”).

“Purser rigged and parish damned,” is the sailor saying in the American Navy, when the tyro first mounts the lined frock and blue jacket, aptly manufactured for him in a State Prison ashore.

1850, Herman Melville, White-Jacket, page 352:

(obsolete, nautical, slang) Having joined the United States Navy, either because of destitution or in order to flee problems on land.


rosewater sailor

en-noun

rosewater sailor (plural rosewater sailors)

(obsolete, nautical, slang) An officer who is incompetent, or not well-suited for the seas.


DSRV

deep submergence rescue vehicle
w:deep submergence rescue vehicle

(nautical) Initialism of deep submergence rescue vehicle.


rattle the bones

en-verb

rattle the bones (third-person singular simple present rattles the bones, present participle rattling the bones, simple past and past participle rattled the bones)

rattles the bones (present singular third-person)
rattling the bones (participle present)
rattled the bones (participle past)
rattled the bones (past)

Little Mr. Crow shook the dice up and down in his balled hands so long that the Butcher growled "Come on! Come on! Get done, man!" He continued to rattle the bones between his palms, and the Butchers red face twisted up into a scowl.

1902 March, John Oxenham, “The Legion of the Lost”, in Macmillan's Magazine, volume 85, number 509, pages 386–87:

(obsolete, nautical, slang) To play dice.


DSV

deep submergence vehicle
deep submergence vehicle#English

(nautical, submarines) Initialism of deep submergence vehicle.

diving support vessel
diving support vessel#English

dive support vessel
dive support vessel#English

(nautical, underwater diving) Initialism of diving support vessel. or dive support vessel


sail on another board

sail on another board (third-person singular simple present sails on another board, present participle sailing on another board, simple past and past participle sailed on another board)

sails on another board (present singular third-person)
sailing on another board (participle present)
sailed on another board (participle past)
sailed on another board (past)

(obsolete, nautical) To act in an unusual manner; to behave differently.


ship's cousin

"You're a ship's cousin, I tell ye, Master Doo-but-little," roared the steward; "some such matter as a ship's cousin, sir.."

1876, James Fenimore Cooper, “The Pioneers”, in The Pioneers, Houghton Mifflin:

(obsolete, nautical, slang) an esteemed or preferred passenger aboard ship.


piss more than one drinks

piss<> more than one drinks<drinks,drinks,drank>

piss more than one drinks (third-person singular simple present pisses more than one drinks, present participle pissing more than one drinks, simple past and past participle pissed more than one drank)

pisses more than one drinks (present singular third-person)
pissing more than one drinks (participle present)
pissed more than one drank (participle past)
pissed more than one drank (past)


gone north about

..And he's gone on a cruise he liked better than the one you'd have had him; but that's no matter; I had better have gone north about twenty times over than come athwart you.

(idiomatic, obsolete, nautical) Dead, of sailor or seaman whose cause of death was anything except by drowning.


pirate round

(historical, nautical) The sailing route for many trade ships during the 17th century between North America and the Indian Ocean where pirates, with the intention of attacking, could be found along.


red-to-red

(nautical) Describing the condition in which two sea-going ships travelling in opposite directions pass each other on their port sides, making their red navigation lights face each other.


disrate

disrate (third-person singular simple present disrates, present participle disrating, simple past and past participle disrated)

disrates (present singular third-person)
disrating (participle present)
disrated (participle past)
disrated (past)

(nautical) To demote a sailor to a lower rank


inhaul

(nautical) A rope used to haul in the clew of a sail, or a jib boom


green-to-green

(nautical) Describing the condition in which two sea-going ships travelling in opposite directions pass each other on their starboard sides, making their green navigation lights face each other.


shipbroker

(nautical) An intermediary who negotiates between shipowners and people wanting to charter shipping


lengthman

From length + -man (suffix denoting a man or person who is an expert in an area or who takes part in an activity).

suffix

Plans have already been prepared for signalboxes, lengthmen's huts, and first aid rooms. […] Lengthmen's huts are to be built in brick.

1952 February, “British Railways Standard Buildings”, in Railway Magazine, page 74:

A derailment which occurred on April 18 last between Laindon and Pitsea on the London Tilbury & Southend Line was caused by a lengthman who in a moment of aberration clipped a set of spring catch points in the derailing position, concludes Col. J. R. H. Robertson in his report […]

1961 December, “Talking of Trains: Derailment near Laindon”, in Trains Illustrated, London: Ian Allan Publishing, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 717:

I started working on the canal when I was only 14. I was a lengths man on the Shrewsbury, the canal. It was my job to cut hedges and to keep the toe path^([sic – meaning towpath]) clear.

2006 October, Mal Edwards, “Money for Old Rope”, in BBC Wales, archived from the original on 2021-04-21:

It became common practice for day-to-day maintenance to be undertaken by a number of roadmen, each appointed to maintain a length of road. This gave rise to the term, ‘the lengthsman’. Over time, greater mechanisation and centralisation replaced lengthsmen with area-based work teams, controlled from County offices and depots. […] In 2000 Herefordshire Council launched a local initiative, the ‘Lengthsman Scheme,’ to devolve some minor highway works to Parish Councils. […] Parishes are permitted to use the delegated budget to employ a local contractor to undertake the works – the lengthsman. […] Works carried out by lengthsmen can range from clearing minor storm debris discharged onto the highway, cutting back overgrown hedges encroaching on footways and verge cutting as required by the parish.

2021, “Lengthsman Scheme”, in Herefordshire Association of Local Councils, archived from the original on 2021-02-08:

(nautical, rail transport, road transport, chiefly historical) A man responsible for the care and maintenance of a length of canal, railway, or road.

ratavartija

man responsible for the care and maintenance of a length of railway or road


(automotive) a six-wheeled vehicle with six-wheel drive (each wheel has powered drive)


WRNS

Women's Royal Naval Service
w:Women's Royal Naval Service

(UK, military, nautical) Initialism of Women's Royal Naval Service.


reacher

Each tack was only for 100 yards and now we had the right sail while they had reachers.

2005, J. Howard Williams, Love at First Sight: A Lifetime of Sailing on Galveston Bay:

(nautical) A sail, a kind of asymmetrical spinnaker.


boilerhouse

(nautical) The deckhouse above a ship's boiler and engine room.


deballast

en-verb

deballast (third-person singular simple present deballasts, present participle deballasting, simple past and past participle deballasted)

deballasts (present singular third-person)
deballasting (participle present)
deballasted (participle past)
deballasted (past)

(nautical) To remove ballast from a vessel


taffrail log

(nautical) A mechanical device dragged from the stern of the vessel that indicates the vessel's speed through the water; usually consists of a propeller, a reading unit and a stiff line connecting them.


chip log

(nautical) A simple device for measuring the speed of a vessel, consisting of a wooden board (drag) attached to a line on a reel.