boatswain's chair

American  

noun

1. a seat composed of a plank suspended in a horizontal position from ropes, used by painters and other persons who work on the exteriors of buildings, ships, etc., while seated at a considerable height.

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boatswain's chair British  

noun

1. nautical a seat consisting of a short flat board slung from ropes, used to support a person working on the side of a vessel or in its rigging

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Etymology

Origin of boatswain's chair

First recorded in 1875–80

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

boatswain's chair

Soon Mitscher had to transfer by boatswain's chair to the destroyer English, which flew his three-starred flag with unaccustomed pride.

From Time Magazine Archive

The boatswain's chair was then attached, and with the aid of a pair of strong horses, who pulled away at one end of the rope, the professor was hauled to the top of the rock.

From The Great Round World and What Is Going On In It, Vol. 1, No. 42, August 26, 1897 A Weekly Magazine for Boys and Girls by Bishop, Julia Truitt

Slung in a boatswain’s chair over the sloping deck the lad soon completed this task.

From Boy Scouts in the North Sea The Mystery of a Sub by Ralphson, G. Harvey (George Harvey)

Through the eddying tide ... up over the slippery rocks ... and presently Jim and the mate were unfastening the bonds that held the insensible millionaire in the boatswain's chair.

From Jim Spurling, Fisherman or Making Good by Tolman, Albert Walter

It was usual to have a boatswain's chair to sit and be lowered down in while tarring these stays.

From Windjammers and Sea Tramps by Runciman, Walter