earing

American

[eer-ing] / ˈɪər ɪŋ /

noun

Nautical.

a rope attached to a cringle and used for bending a corner of a sail to a yard, boom, or gaff or for reefing a sail.

earing British

/ ˈɪərɪŋ /

noun

nautical a line fastened to a corner of a sail for reefing

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of earing

First recorded in 1620–30; ear ¹ + -ing ¹

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

I see that plain enough; but, shall it be said that another did the duty of Edward Earing?

From Great Sea Stories by French, Joseph Lewis

His words were borne past the inattentive ears of the excited and mortified followers of Earing, but they failed of their effect.

From The Red Rover by Cooper, James Fenimore

There has existed but one occasion for introducing to the reader the mate who filled the station in the ship next to that of Earing.

From The Red Rover by Cooper, James Fenimore

"It is an awful night, Captain Wilder!" said Earing presuming on his rank to be the first of the two to speak.

From The Red Rover by Cooper, James Fenimore

Earing exclaimed, after a long, meditative pause, and with a voice in which distrust, or rather awe, was beginning to get the ascendancy.

From The Red Rover by Cooper, James Fenimore

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023