centerboard

[sen-ter-bawrd, -bohrd]

noun

Nautical.

1. a pivoted fin keel that can be swung upward and aft within a watertight trunk when not in use.

Word History and Origins

Origin of centerboard¹

An Americanism dating back to 1840–50; center + board

Example Sentences

It had a slot in the center of the cockpit, beside which rested a long centerboard.

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Osh pulled up the centerboard as we came into shore alongside the fish pier.

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Jorge Lima of Portugal recalls dropping from first place to last in a race here after a tarp that was floating beneath the surface caught his centerboard.

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But the centerboard twice rubbed on the bottom lightly, so he took her back out a bit to deeper water until he had covered most of the bay and still found no sign of civilization.

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It stays shallow a long way out, and until I could push the centerboard down, we drifted.

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