bowline Hear it!

bowline definition

bow·line (bō′lin, -līn′)

noun

  1. a rope running forward from the middle of a square sail's weather edge to the bow, used to keep the sail taut when the ship is sailing into the wind
  2. a knot used in making a loop that will not slip or tighten under tension
    in full bowline knot: see knot,

Etymology: ME boueline, prob. < MDu boeglijne (or Dan bovline); for IE bases see bow & line

bowline Idioms

on a bowline

with sails set so as to head close to the wind; closehauled

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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