taffrail log
- noun
- Archaic
:
log de popa
- The sailor dropped the taffrail log overboard to determine how fast the vessel was moving.
Examples
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The captain checked the taffrail log reading before adjusting their estimated time of arrival.
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Many ships use a taffrail log to monitor their speed.
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Older ships often relied on a taffrail log to calculate their speed at sea.
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The captain checked the taffrail log for speed readings.
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Older ships often relied on a taffrail log to calculate their speed at sea.
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The captain checked the taffrail log reading before adjusting their estimated time of arrival.
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The sailor dropped the taffrail log overboard to determine how fast the vessel was moving.
Synonyms
24
9.7
A floating object on a knotted line used from a ship to measure speed
A cigar-shaped tool with spinning fins that measures a ship's speed through the water
A long round object with rotating fins that measures how fast a ship moves in water
A tool pulled behind a ship to measure how far it travels
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound combines 'taffrail' (the stern railing) with 'log' (a speed-measuring floating device), so its meaning — a log used at or towed from the taffrail to measure a ship's speed — is directly inferable from the parts. Although nautical and somewhat technical, the noun+noun composition follows straightforward English modification patterns, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents can predict the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
Taffrail log comes from sailors measuring a ship's speed by towing a small 'log' from the ship's taffrail, the rail at the back; the little device had a spinning wheel or fins that turned in the water. That's why taffrail log means 'a speed-measuring device towed behind a ship'.