clipper ship
5
7.0
- noun
- /ˈklɪpər ʃɪp/
- Archaic
:
goleta
- The historic clipper ship is famed for its sleek design and speed on the open sea.
- Clipper ship sails
- old clipper ship
Examples
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One hundred years ago, on the 21st of April... out on the waters around Spivey Point... a small clipper ship drew toward land.
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A man and a boy on a clipper ship.
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"I like clipper ships because they are fast.
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I like clipper ships because they are fast.
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Clipper ships sail in the ocean.
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"Clipper ships have lots of sails and are made out of wood."
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Spooner said he saw a clipper ship last night in the fog.
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Clipper ships have lots of sails and are made of wood.
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The clipper ship sped through the waves, its tall masts catching the wind beautifully.
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In the mid-19th century, many sailors relied on the swift clipper ship for long ocean voyages.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
A large boat that carries people or goods across the sea
26
9.2
An old fast sailing ship with tall masts used to carry cargo long distances
7
2.9
A large ship moved by sails, usually with more than one mast
2
3.7
A boat with sails that uses wind to move
How Fast
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly derivable from the constituents: 'clipper' denotes a fast sailing vessel and 'ship' denotes a vessel, so 'clipper ship' straightforwardly means a fast sailing ship. This noun-noun composition follows normal, cross-linguistic compounding patterns and would be understandable to a B1 learner who knows both words.
Etymology
Clipper ship comes from the verb clip, which meant 'to move quickly'. These ships had a thin hull and many sails so they could 'clip' through the water, so the name came to mean a large, fast sailing ship used for long voyages.