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Glite Dictionary
trawl line

trawl line

6.1
A long fishing line with many short lines and hooks used to catch fish
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : línea de arrastre
  • Inspecting each hook on the trawl line is a time-consuming task for the crew.

Examples

  • The storm snapped their trawl line, and they lost a day's worth of fish.

  • The fisherman set out with his trawl line at dawn.

  • Fishermen set the trawl line in the deep sea, hoping for a big catch overnight.

  • Many fish were caught on the trawl line yesterday.

  • The fishermen set out early in the morning to deploy their trawl line and catch fish.

  • After a successful day at sea, they pulled in the trawl line to check their catch.

  • Using a trawl line, the crew was able to catch a large number of fish at once.

Synonyms

trawl
vstrawl line
  • Specialized
2 5.1

A large net or line with hooks that fishermen drag through water to catch fish

is suspended between buoys and not dragged through the water
trotline
vstrawl line
  • Specialized
1 9.9

A long fishing line with many baited hooks stretched across water

is similar but does not stress horizontal orientation
longline
vstrawl line
  • Specialized
1 5.3

A very long fishing line with many baited hooks to catch fish

attaches many short branch hooks to the main line instead of direct hooks
spiller
vstrawl line
  • Archaic
1 9.9

A long fishing line with many short lines and hooks hung between buoys to catch fish

is the specific version typically described as suspended between buoys
setline
vstrawl line
  • Specialized
8.7

A long fishing line with many short lines and hooks that hangs between buoys

is the same general setup described without that specific term

Surface Forms

trawl line singular
trawl lines plural

Morphology

trawl + line

The meaning is directly compositional: 'trawl' (a net or hooked gear used for towing) combined with 'line' (a long cord) yields a line used for trawling — a long fishing line with hooks. This noun+noun compound follows a common and transparent formation pattern in English (and similar patterns exist in other languages), so a B1 learner who knows both constituents should be able to infer the meaning.

Etymology

The noun trawl line comes from fishing: a trawl here means a way of catching fish and a long line with many small hooks and floats is set in the water like a fence to catch fish. That's why it means 'a long fishing line with many hooks used to catch fish'.