shelter deck
- noun
- Specialized
:
cubierta de refugio
- The sailors enjoyed the sun on the shelter deck before their shift started in the cabin below.
Examples
-
So I told the officers of the port that every barge ought to have a wooden framework on which a canvas shelter deck could be spread to keep the crew out of the wet during their watch below.
Fiction book (1991) -
While they were outfitting the barges for the voyage, and when the framing for the shelter deck was in place on each vessel, I had nothing to do but study the charts.
Fiction book (1991) -
During the storm, the crew sought refuge on the shelter deck as the rain poured down.
-
She read her book on the shelter deck, appreciating the fresh air while protected from the waves below.
Synonyms
9
3.4
A higher level on a ship or in a stadium where people sit
1
6.4
Top outside part of a ship open to rain and wind that protects the area below
The top open deck on a passenger ship where people can stand
The top open deck on a passenger ship exposed to the weather
Surface Forms
Morphology
The noun combination 'shelter' + 'deck' would lead learners to infer a deck that provides protection, so there is an obvious compositional connection. However, the actual maritime meaning is a specialized, technical sense (an upper deck with no overhead protection that nevertheless shelters the deck below) that is not fully predictable from the parts and may even contradict learners' basic expectations, so domain knowledge is needed.
Etymology
The name shelter deck comes from ships. The upper deck sits above another area and, like a flat roof, helps shelter the space below from wind or spray even though it is open on top. So the name means a deck that gives 'shelter' to the deck under it.