picket ship
- noun
- Specialized
:
barco de vigilancia
- The captain ordered a picket ship to monitor the sea for enemy vessels.
Examples
-
During the exercise, they deployed a picket ship as an early warning system.
-
"We have a new model picket ship.
Fiction book (1997) -
Off to his left, a picket ship in a trim new design was poised on her ring, vehicles darting about in her shadow like ants around a fencepost.
Fiction book (1997) -
The picket ship alerted the fleet of a potential threat approaching from the north.
Synonyms
7
3.5
A small boat that watches for danger and protects a coast or harbor
5
6.1
A person who stands outside a camp to watch for enemy movement
4
3.7
A ship used by the navy or coast guard to watch and protect the sea
1
5.2
A boat that watches and protects a harbor or ships
1
8.0
A small military ship that escorts and protects convoys at sea
1
7.9
A navy ship kept ready to respond quickly to emergencies
A small boat that patrols and watches for danger near a harbor or fleet
How Big
140
3.6
- Specialized
5
8.2
- Specialized
62
7.3
- Specialized
- Specialized
7
3.5
- Specialized
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly recoverable from combining 'picket' (a guard or lookout) with 'ship' (a vessel): the compound names a ship that serves as a guard/lookout. This is a regular noun+noun compositional pattern in English (and common cross-linguistically), so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would readily infer the meaning.
Etymology
Picket ship comes from the idea of a picket — a small group of guards sent ahead to watch for danger — and a ship sent out in front. So a picket ship is a ship that spots enemies and warns the rest of the fleet, which is why it means a 'guard' or 'lookout' ship.