monkey bridge
- noun
- Specialized
:
puente de observación
- Crew members used the monkey bridge to observe the deck during docking procedures.
Examples
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Safety rails were installed along the monkey bridge to prevent accidents while crossing it.
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The crew climbed up to the monkey bridge to get a better view.
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The engineer inspected the engines from the monkey bridge above the boiler room.
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I saw a monkey bridge on the ship during my tour.
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Crew members used the monkey bridge to observe the deck during docking procedures.
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Safety rails were installed along the monkey bridge to prevent accidents while crossing it.
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The engineer inspected the engines from the monkey bridge above the boiler room.
Synonyms
653
6.8
The raised area on a ship where it is steered and controlled
1
9.4
An open deck above the steering area where the captain steers the boat
1
6.1
An upper deck on a ship where the captain stands to steer and look out
A small open deck above where the captain stands to watch and help steer the ship
A small open deck above the ship's control room for steering and a better view
Raised front part of a ship's upper deck where people steer and watch
A small platform high on a ship's mast for watching the sea
A raised part at the back of a ship used for a cabin or lookout
How Narrow
Surface Forms
Morphology
monkey + bridge
The constituent 'bridge' clearly signals a ship platform, so a learner may infer this is a type of bridge or platform on a ship; however 'monkey' does not transparently convey the specific sense 'high, narrow observation deck' and here functions as specialized nautical jargon. Because one constituent gives a helpful clue but the overall sense requires domain knowledge or prior exposure, the expression is best classified as partially but not fully predictable.
Etymology
Monkey bridge may come from the image of a small animal moving along a thin path high above the ground. On ships, the narrow walkway looked like a tree branch a monkey could cross, so people joined monkey and bridge, and the name came to mean 'a high, narrow platform' used to watch or steer the ship.