breeches buoy

American  

noun

Nautical.

1. a rescue device consisting of a life buoy from which is suspended a canvas sling, similar in form to a pair of breeches, in which shipwrecked or disabled persons are hauled from a vessel to the shore or to another vessel by means of a rope and pulley between them.

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breeches buoy British  

noun

1. a ring-shaped life buoy with a support in the form of a pair of short breeches, in which a person is suspended for safe transfer from a ship

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Etymology

Origin of breeches buoy

First recorded in 1875–80

Example Sentences

Then they attached a breeches buoy, or a canvas sling, to the pulley, which they hoped could carry the men ashore.

From New York Times • Nov. 5, 2019

The ship’s crew would tie off the rope and attach a breeches buoy that worked like a zip line to bring survivors to shore.

From Washington Times • Aug. 8, 2018

They are gradually carried off by grace of the wireless and the breeches buoy.

From Time Magazine Archive

With a breeches buoy across a quarter-mile of snowy surf Coast Guardsmen took off nine men, a woman, a dog, two cats.

From Time Magazine Archive

He wanted to see the operation of setting up the breeches buoy in order to make a good story, with plenty of details.

From Larry Dexter's Great Search or, The Hunt for the Missing Millionaire by Garis, Howard Roger