This page gathers the 3,515 dictionary entries belonging to the domain “Transport”, as labelled by Wiktionary. Each word leads to its full entry: definitions, etymology, pronunciation, examples. Page 15 of 35: from “gingerbread work” to “harpings”.
- gingerbread work noun The carved or gilded decorations on a ship.
- gird verb (of a vessel towing another) To be pulled on sideways by its towline, putting it at risk of capsizing.
- girt adj Bound by a cable; used of a vessel so moored by two anchors that she swings against one of the cables by force of the current or tide.
- glasspack noun A kind of automobile muffler in which the exhaust gas passes straight through the center of the muffler. It consists of a smaller tube…
- glassy adj Lacking any chop; smooth and mostly flat.
- glory hole noun A generally untidy place.
- glove box noun A small compartment with a door on the dashboard of a car, usually on passenger side, used to store (and sometimes lock) items.
- glove compartment noun A compartment recessed in an automobile’s dashboard, that usually has a door and can be locked, intended to hold gloves, papers, etc.
- GM noun Metacentric height, a measure of a ship's static stability in roll.
- go by the board verb To fall or to go overboard; to be cast over the side of a ship.
- go down verb To sink.
- go down with verb To die in the sinking of (a ship or boat).
- go large verb To have the wind at such an angle to the sail that the vessel gains its highest speed.
- go-show noun The situation where a passenger checks in at an airport in the hope of getting an earlier flight than was reserved.
- goashore noun A sailor's best clothes, to be worn when going on land.
- gob noun (nautical)
- gobline noun One of the ropes or chains serving as stays for the dolphin striker or the bowsprit.
- gondola noun A type of open railway car with low sides, used to carry heavy freight such as crushed rock or steel.
- gone north about verb Dead, of sailor or seaman whose cause of death was anything except by drowning.
- goods noun Freight, as opposed to passengers.
- goods shed noun A building in a railway goods yard for the storage of goods before or after transport by train, typically with a track running through it…
- goose wing noun A position of sails in a fore-and-aft rigged sailboat, in which the mainsail is set to the leeward and the jib to the windward. This…
- gooseneck noun The swivel connection on a sailboat located near the bottom of the mast that the boom attaches to. When a sailboat performs a tack or a…
- goosewinged adj Having a goose wing; said of a fore-and-aft sailboat with the foresail set on one side (e.g. starboard) and mainsail on the other (e.g.…
- goring adj Cut gradually sloping, so as to be broader at the clew than at the earing of a sail.
- governor noun A pilot; a steersman.
- graft verb To cover, as a ring bolt, block strap, splicing, etc., with a weaving of small cord or rope yarns.
- grafting noun The act or method of weaving a cover for a ring, rope end, etc.
- grand noun A thousand RPM.
- grand tourer noun A kind of sports car designed for high speeds and long distances, combining performance and luxury attributes.
- grapnel noun A small anchor, having more than two flukes, used for anchoring a small vessel.
- grapple noun A device consisting of iron claws, attached to the end of a rope, used for grasping and holding an enemy ship prior to boarding; a…
- grating noun The strong wooden lattice used to cover a hatch, admitting light and air; also, a movable lattice used for the flooring of boats.
- grave verb To clean, as a vessel's bottom, of barnacles, grass, etc., and pay it over with pitch — so called because graves or greaves were formerly…
- great cabin noun An enclosed space on a ship spanning the width of the stern, containing large windows, generally reserved for the captain or commanding…
- greave verb To clean (a ship's bottom); to grave.
- green stamp noun A speeding ticket.
- green time noun The duration during which a green light is displayed, allowing vehicles to proceed through an intersection.
- green water noun A large quantity of water on a ship's deck as a result of massive waves during a large storm.
- green-to-green adj Describing the condition in which two sea-going ships travelling in opposite directions pass each other on their starboard sides, making…
- green-water navy noun A naval force capable of military operations in coastal waters and in the open seas near its home country, but not capable of independent…
- greenout noun A green sign patch applied to a guide sign.
- greeter noun A volunteer who shows tourists around their home city or region for free.
- grice verb to act as a trainspotter; to partake in the activity or hobby of trainspotting.
- gridiron noun An openwork frame on which vessels are placed for examination, cleaning, and repairs.
- gridlock noun A condition of total, interlocking traffic congestion on the streets or highways of a crowded city, in which no one can move because…
- gripe noun A wire rope, often used on davits and other life raft launching systems.
- gripper noun A ticket collector.
- grist noun A given size of rope, common grist being a rope three inches in circumference, with twenty yarns in each of the three strands.
- groaner noun A whistling buoy.
- grommet noun A ring formed of a single strand of rope, laid in three times round, fastening the upper edge of a sail to its stay.
- gronk noun A British Rail Class 09 locomotive.
- ground clearance noun The measured distance between a level surface and the lowest part (other than tires or equivalent) of the bottom of a vehicle surmounting…
- ground frame noun A lever frame controlling the operation of points and/or signals which is installed at ground level.
- ground tackle noun Equipment, such as anchors, cables, or windlasses, for mooring a vessel away from a pier or other fixed moorings.
- ground-effect vehicle noun An aircraft that uses aerodynamic ground effect to attain level flight near the surface of water.
- grounded adj Aground.
- groundswell noun A broad undulation of the open ocean, often as the result of a distant disturbance.
- grouser noun A temporary pile driven into the bottom of a river to hold a boat in position; a spud.
- guaranteed arrival noun A hotel reservation that is either prepaid or secured by a credit card, and will be honoured regardless of the guest's check-in time.
- guard noun An employee, normally travelling in the last vehicle of a train, responsible for the safety of the train.
- guard's van noun The last carriage on a passenger train which was occupied by the guard, consisted of storage space for parcels, bicycles, etc, and…
- guardrail noun Synonym of check rail.
- gudgeon noun In a vessel with a stern-mounted rudder: the fitting into which the pintle of the rudder fits, allowing the rudder to swing freely.
- guinea pig noun A midshipman in the East India service; (by extension) a low-skilled or non-proficient seaman.
- gullwing noun Synonym of goose wing (sail position).
- gun noun Violent blasts of wind.
- gun-brig noun A small two-masted vessel during the Age of Sail, typically carrying 12 guns, comprising two long guns in the chase position and ten…
- gunkhole noun A small cove, especially a small fishing community.
- gunship noun A ship equipped with heavy artillery.
- gunter noun A wire that leads from a point near the end of a gaff to a point near the other end. A block travels along this wire, and a halyard is…
- gunter rig noun a rigging configuration consiting of a fore and aft sail set abaft (behind) the mast. The lower half of the luff (front) of the sail is…
- guy noun A support rope or cable used to aid in hoisting or lowering.
- gybe verb To shift a fore-and-aft sail from one side of a sailing vessel to the other, while sailing before the wind.
- hacker noun One who operates a taxicab; a cabdriver.
- half board noun A hotel rate that includes accommodation, breakfast and dinner, but no meal at lunchtime.
- half-decked adj Of or pertaining to a vessel consisting of a deck covering about half of its length or surface area.
- halfdeck noun The portion of the deck next below the spar deck which is between the mainmast and the cabin.
- hall noun Hall class, a class of steam locomotive used on the GWR.
- halo noun Ellipsis of halo headlight.
- halt noun A minor railway station (usually unstaffed) in the United Kingdom.
- halyard noun A rope used to raise or lower a sail, flag, spar or yard.
- hammer blow noun A pounding of the rails by the driving wheels of a steam locomotive caused by the inertia of unbalanced parts.
- hamper noun Articles ordinarily indispensable, but in the way at certain times.
- hand verb To furl (a sail).
- hand over hand adv by passing the hands alternately one before or above the other, especially with rope
- handbrake noun A brake in a vehicle, set by hand, and usually locking on until released by hand, enabling its use when parked.
- handbrake turn noun An automobile driving manoeuvre where the driver starts turning the vehicle and then pulls on the handbrake to make the rear tyres lose…
- handling time noun The total number of business days from the moment one receives payment for an item and the moment when the package is processed or scanned…
- hands off intj Cut off a hand: decreed by old admiralty law as punishment for pulling a knife during a fight with a shipmate.
- handsomely adv Without undue haste; carefully, slowly and steadily.
- hank noun A ring or shackle that secures a staysail to its stay and allows the sail to glide smoothly up and down.
- happy landings noun Successful arrivals on land (by air or water), without any untoward incidents.
- harbor noun A sheltered expanse of water, adjacent to land, in which ships may anchor or dock, especially for loading and unloading.
- harborage noun A place for refuge for a vessel.
- hard noun A firm or paved beach or slope convenient for hauling vessels out of the water.
- hard class noun A class of accommodation, typically on trains, which is less comfortable than other classes, and might have wooden seating.
- harden up verb To tighten up a sailboat's sheets in order to prevent luffing.
- hardtack noun A large, hard biscuit made from unleavened flour and water; formerly used as a long-term staple food aboard ships.
- harpings noun The front part of the wales of a vessel, around the bow and fastened to the stem; used to provide protection from the seas.