Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
⚓ A rope holder 🎯 An expert marksman
deadeye

deadeye

1 9.9
A round flat piece of hard wood with holes used to tighten ropes holding a ship's mast
  • noun
  • /ˈdɛdaɪ/
  • Archaic
translation icon : ojo de muerto
  • The sailor carefully installed the deadeye to ensure the shrouds were tightly secured.

Examples

  • The sailor replaced the worn deadeye on the rigging.

  • The captain explained that a deadeye is essential for holding the rigging in place on a sailing ship.

  • Each deadeye was carefully set in place to help stabilize the mast.

  • Restoring the antique ship involved carving new deadeyes from hardwood.

  • The sailors replaced the old deadeye to ensure the shroud was properly tensioned.

  • Each deadeye must be securely fastened to prevent accidents.

  • During the ship's repairs, the workers replaced several old deadeyes with new ones to maintain safety.

Surface Forms

deadeye singular
deadeyes plural

Morphology

deadeye = dead + eye (opaque) = dead + eye

Although formed from 'dead' + 'eye', the nautical object denoted by 'deadeye' is a specialized rigging part whose function and form are not deducible by a typical learner from the component meanings.

Etymology

Deadeye comes from dead + eye, where eye means a round 'hole' and dead means 'not moving'; the wooden disk looks like an 'eye' but stays fixed. So sailors used a deadeye to hold and tighten the ropes that support the mast.