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Glite Dictionary
prolonge knot

prolonge knot

9.9
A way of tying a rope to attach and pull a cannon carriage
  • noun
  • Archaic
translation icon : nudo de prolongue
  • The artillery crew quickly tied a prolonge knot to secure the cannon for transport.

Examples

  • Without a proper prolonge knot, the rope might slip while dragging the heavy carriage.

  • Learning to tie a prolonge knot was essential for 19th-century gunners.

  • The sailor tied a prolonge knot to secure the gun carriage.

  • Have you ever used a prolonge knot in your sailing experience?

  • The artillery crew quickly tied a prolonge knot to secure the cannon for transport.

  • Learning to tie a prolonge knot was essential for 19th-century gunners.

  • Without a proper prolonge knot, the rope might slip while dragging the heavy carriage.

Synonyms

sailor's breastplate
vsprolonge knot
  • Specialized
9.9

A knot for tying a rope around a cannon so sailors can pull it

is used for the same purpose but not limited to naval contexts

Surface Forms

prolonge knot singular
prolonge knots plural

Morphology

prolonge + knot

The meaning is directly compositional: 'prolonge' (a rope used to tow a gun carriage) + 'knot' (a fastening) yields a knot made in the prolonge for attaching/dragging the carriage. Although the vocabulary is domain-specific, the noun+noun compounding pattern is regular and a B1 learner who knows both constituents would readily infer the MWE meaning.

Etymology

Prolonge knot is named after a short rope called a prolonge that soldiers used with cannons. They tied a special knot in that rope to 'attach' and 'drag' a heavy 'gun carriage', so the name now means 'a knot for attaching and dragging a gun carriage'.