caisson

[ key-suh n, -son ]

/ ˈkeɪ sən, -sɒn /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR caisson ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a structure used in underwater work, consisting of an airtight chamber, open at the bottom and containing air under sufficient pressure to exclude the water.

a boatlike structure used as a gate for a dock or the like.

Nautical.

Also called camel, pontoon. a float for raising a sunken vessel, sunk beside the vessel, made fast to it, and then pumped out to make it buoyant.
a watertight structure built against a damaged area of a hull to render the hull watertight; cofferdam.

a two-wheeled wagon, used for carrying artillery ammunition.

an ammunition chest.

a wooden chest containing bombs or explosives, used formerly as a mine.

Architecture. coffer(def 4).

Words nearby caisson

cairn terrier, cairngorm, cairngorm mountains, cairns, cairo, caisson, caisson disease, caithness, caitiff, caitlin, caius

Origin of caisson

1695–1705; < French, Middle French < Old Provençal, equivalent to caissa box (see case²) + -on augmentative suffix

OTHER WORDS FROM caisson

cais·soned, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Examples from the Web for caisson

The enemy had again outflanked us, and the men lifted me on a caisson.
Memoirs of a Veteran Who Served as a Private in the 60's in the War Between the States|Isaac Hermann
The griping pains that accompany the "Caisson Disease" are excruciating.
Inventions of the Great War|A. Russell (Alexander Russell) Bond
The chief danger of caisson work is the "bends," or "caisson disease."
American Adventures|Julian Street
The excited Frenchman at the caisson had changed his mind evidently.
The Boy Scouts Afoot in France|Herbert Carter

An examination of the caisson showed that the men had struck a vein of sulphuretted hydrogen gas.
Boys' Second Book of Inventions|Ray Stannard Baker

British Dictionary definitions for caisson

caisson

/ (kəˈsuːn, ˈkeɪsən) /

noun

a watertight chamber open at the bottom and containing air under pressure, used to carry out construction work under water

a similar unpressurized chamber

a watertight float filled with air, used to raise sunken shipsSee also camel (def. 2)

a watertight structure placed across the entrance of a basin, dry dock, etc, to exclude water from it

a box containing explosives, formerly used as a mine
an ammunition chest
a two-wheeled vehicle containing an ammunition chest

another name for coffer (def. 3)

Word Origin for caisson

C18: from French, assimilated to caisse case ²

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

caisson

noun

Words related to caisson

Words nearby caisson

Origin of caisson

OTHER WORDS FROM caisson

Examples from the Web for caisson

British Dictionary definitions for caisson

noun

Word Origin for caisson