marlingspike

1 9.9

A pointed metal tool for separating rope strands when joining ropes

noun

Specialized

: pico de marlin

The sailor used a marlingspike to carefully separate the rope strands before splicing.

Examples

He used a marlingspike to separate the rope strands.
A marlingspike is an essential part of any good rigger's toolkit.
With a marlingspike, she untangled the tight knots in the thick cable.
The sailor's marlingspike was essential for the job.
The sailor used a marlingspike to carefully separate the rope strands before splicing.
A marlingspike is an essential part of any good rigger's toolkit.
With a marlingspike, she untangled the tight knots in the thick cable.

Synonyms

marlinspike

vsmarlingspike

Specialized

1 9.9

A pointed metal tool sailors use to open rope strands to join them

is the general tool not limited to sailor use

fid

vsmarlingspike

Specialized

1 9.9

A small pointed tool used to separate rope strands when splicing or fixing them

is a larger pointed metal tool used mainly for separating strands in splicing

marlinespike

vsmarlingspike

Specialized

9.9

A pointed metal tool used to separate rope strands before joining them

refers to the same tool but uses metal generally rather than iron specifically

Surface Forms

marlingspike singular

marlingspikes plural

Morphology

marlingspike = marling + spike (semi-transparent) = marling + spike

The element 'spike' clearly signals a pointed tool, but 'marling' is a specialized nautical term for small twine/seizing and is likely unknown to average learners.

Etymology

The word marlingspike comes from marling, a 'thin rope' used to bind larger ropes, and spike, which means 'point'. Sailors used this pointed tool to pull apart rope strands and then join them back together, so marlingspike now means a sharp metal tool for working with rope.