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broadside

broadside

1 9.1
The whole side of a ship from front to back
  • noun
  • /ˈbrɔːdsaɪd/
  • Specialized
translation icon : costado
  • Majestically, she passed from the northeast to show her broadside, turned to starboard, and glided down the sky to the southwest, effortlessly, almost soundlessly.

Examples

  • He turns broadside at about 25 yards and offers me a shot.

    Blog text (5)
  • Immediately afterward, he did something in that odd, noiseless sculling fashion of his, and it moved the boat broadside to port for at least five or six feet.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • He stands broadside to the road's line.

    Academic text (2002)
  • The Princess would never survive if she were caught broadside in the maddened waves.

    Fiction book (1998)
  • The Fearless turned broadside immediately and, helpless now, did a half-roll into the ocean.

    Fiction book (1996)
  • In the raging surf, the vessel swung around broadside.

    Blog text (28)
  • The pilot expertly swung the boat broadside to the jetty's end, and Michael jumped off.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • When sailing, it is crucial not to let your vessel get broadside to the high waves during a storm.

  • The captain ordered the ship to position broadside to the dock for an easier unloading process.

  • During the race, the crew faced challenges when the yacht was broadside to the strong winds.

Synonyms

boatside
vsbroadside
5.1

The side of a boat near the edge

is the entire side from stem to stern rather than only the edge area

Surface Forms

broadside singular
broadsides plural

Morphology

broadside = broad + side (transparent) = broad + side

A straightforward compound 'broad' + 'side' describing the whole side of a vessel; the sense is directly compositional.

Etymology

Broadside originally meant the whole broad ('wide') side ('side') of a ship from front to back, so it simply names the ship's entire side where the cannons sat.