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Glite Dictionary
🍪 A large biscuit ⚓ Anchor support beam
cathead

cathead

1 9.9
A strong beam on a ship that holds the anchor
  • noun
  • /ˈkæthɛd/
  • Specialized
: cathead
  • Before docking, the crew made sure the anchor was secure on the cathead.

Examples

  • A wooden cathead extended from the ship's bow to hold the heavy anchor.

  • The ship's cathead was made of sturdy oak.

  • The sailors carefully lifted the anchor onto the cathead after a long day at sea.

  • Many catheads on older ships are beautifully carved.

  • The crew secured the anchor to the ship's cathead to prevent it from swinging during the storm.

  • When raising the anchor, the sailor carefully adjusted the line attached to the cathead.

  • He explained how the cathead on the boat is crucial for keeping the anchor stable and in place.

Surface Forms

cathead singular
catheads plural

Morphology

cathead = cat + head (opaque) = cat + head

The technical nautical sense 'beam used to support an anchor' is specialized and not derivable from the literal meanings of 'cat' and 'head'.

Etymology

Cathead for the ship part also comes from cat and head; one popular story says sailors carved a cat's head on the beam or thought the timber looked like a cat's head. That's why a cathead is the strong beam at the ship's bow that holds and lifts the anchor.