floating dock
1
5.3
- noun
- Specialized
:
muelle flotante
- Beyond the hotel lay a network of pontoons and floating docks leading out to the boats, which kept departing and arriving as people turned up.
- moor at the floating dock
Examples
-
When he landed on the floating dock, it rocked.
Fiction book (1991) -
The floating dock is gone, but the ramp is open and not cluttered with debris.
Blog text (10) -
At sea level there'll be a floating dock system that moves with the tide, up and down, so boats can dock.
-
Now he sat cross-legged on the floating dock in front of their house, looking out to sea, hoping to spot a battleship steaming over the horizon.
Fiction book (1999) -
The workers used the floating dock to lift the boat out of the water for maintenance.
-
During the storm, the floating dock provided a safe place for the rescue vessel to unload.
-
After repairs, the captain guided the ship onto the floating dock for refloating.
Synonyms
A portable structure that sinks so a ship can enter and then lifts it out for repair
How Movable
- Specialized
- Specialized
1
5.3
- Specialized
4
6.1
125
1.4
Surface Forms
Morphology
The noun phrase is compositionally transparent: a B1 learner who knows 'floating' (remaining on a liquid's surface) and 'dock' (a platform for vessels) will readily infer it refers to a dock that floats on the water. The more technical detail about submerging and lifting vessels is specialized, but the core meaning is directly derivable and cross-linguistically regular.
Etymology
Floating dock comes from a clear, literal image: a dock that floats on the water and can be sunk so a ship can move in. When the dock is raised, it 'lifts' the ship out for repairs, so the name shows what it does.