torpedo-boat destroyer
- noun
- /tɔrˈpiːdoʊ boʊt dɪˈstrɔɪər/
- Archaic
:
destructor de torpederas
- The naval fleet included several torpedo-boat destroyers.
Examples
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The torpedo-boat destroyer played a crucial role in naval battles at the turn of the twentieth century.
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Many navies quickly adopted the torpedo-boat destroyer to counter the threat posed by fast enemy torpedo boats.
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The museum's oldest ship is a restored torpedo-boat destroyer from the early 1900s.
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A torpedo-boat destroyer was crucial during naval battles.
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The torpedo-boat destroyer played a crucial role in naval warfare during the early 20th century.
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Many navies around the world commissioned torpedo-boat destroyers to protect their fleets.
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Historically, the torpedo-boat destroyer was designed to combat fast-moving torpedo boats.
Synonyms
62
7.3
A small fast warship with strong weapons that protects larger ships from submarines and planes
1
7.5
A fast military ship that carries weapons that can steer themselves to attack ships and aircraft
How Armed
- Archaic
68
5.5
- Specialized
50
7.4
- Specialized
62
7.3
- Archaic
- Specialized
1
6.3
Surface Forms
Morphology
torpedo-boat + destroyer
The compound is compositionally transparent: it denotes a 'destroyer' whose object is 'torpedo-boat' (i.e., a ship that destroys or defends against torpedo boats). Even if somewhat technical or historical, the meaning follows straightforward noun + noun composition and is inferable by a B1 learner who knows the constituent words (torpedo, boat, destroyer).
Etymology
Torpedo-boat destroyer comes from a simple image: a small warship built to attack and destroy enemy torpedo-boats. So, the name literally means 'a destroyer of torpedo-boats', which is why these ships were the early form of today's destroyer.