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Thursday, October 20, 2011

Wondrous Words Wednesday

Kathy over at Bermudaonion's Weblog hosts Wondrous Words Wednesday. If you come across a word (or two) while reading that is new to you and would like to share your new knowledge, then hop over to Kathy's place and link up!

Here's what I've got this week from The Island of Dr. Moreau by H. G. Wells:

Spankers: Usually gaff-headed sails set from the aftermost lower mast of a sailing ship.

Context (p. 18): The patched and dirty spankers were tense before the wind, and up aloft the little ship seemed carrying every sail she had.

Taffrail: the aftermost railing around the stern of a ship, often, but not always, ornately carved.

Context (p. 18): We went past the steersman to the taffrail and stared side by side for a space at the water foaming and the bubbles dancing and vanishing in her wake.
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2 comments:

  1. bermudaonionOctober 20, 2011 at 9:30 PM

    Those are new to me! My first thought when I saw spankers was undergarments. I guess I was thinking of Spanx.

    ReplyDelete
  2. LouiseOctober 22, 2011 at 7:03 PM

    Boating terms are always tricky. Spanker brought to mind spinnaker, but it seems these aren't the same things, although a spanker was used with a spinnaker apparently.

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