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Glite Dictionary
🗼 A rear mast ⛵ A rear sail
mizzen

mizzen

1 9.9
A sail set on the rear mast that runs front to back
  • noun
  • /ˈmɪzən/
  • Specialized
translation icon : mesana
  • The captain ordered the crew to adjust the mizzen to catch the wind more effectively.

Examples

  • They raised the mizzen to help steer the ship through the narrow passage.

  • In less than a minute, the shrouds of the mizzen had caught, and the mainsail unfurled, its moorings burnt through, a falling sheet of flame.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • If the waves are at an angle to the wind and hull, making life uncomfortable, try sheeting the mizzen to the side, pushing the boat around to a more comfortable alignment with the waves.

    Blog text (28)

  • MIZZEN BOOM, MIZZEN HALYARD WINCH.

    Captain Ron (1992)

  • As the wind picked up, we quickly trimmed the mizzen sail to stabilize the boat.

Synonyms

spanker
vsmizzen
  • Specialized
1 9.9

A sail at the back of a ship on the lowest mast

refers to the sail specifically on a ship's rear mast
mizen
vsmizzen
  • Specialized
9.9

A sail set on the rear mast of a sailing ship

is the standard spelling for that fore-and-aft sail

Compounds

mizzen course
  • Specialized
9.9

The lowest sail on the mast at the back of a sailing ship

mizzen-topmast
  • Specialized
9.9

A small mast above the rear mast on a sailing ship

Surface Forms

mizzen singular
mizzens plural

Etymology

Mizzen comes from an old word mesana that meant 'middle'. A helpful way to remember is that the mizzen sail is the one set on the mast near the middle or rear of a ship.