davit
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of davit
1325–75; Middle English daviot < Anglo-French, apparently diminutive of Davi David
Explanation
When a large ship has a small, onboard crane that lowers lifeboats into the water, that crane is called a davit. Oil rigs and cruise ships are examples of vessels that have permanent, fixed davits. One of the less well-known facts about the Titanic disaster is that its crew wasn't properly trained on how to operate the davits. The lifeboats were boarded and lowered so slowly that the crew wasn't able to use every available lifeboat in time. Modern ships installed with davits make it easy to get passengers into these boats and get them into the water. Davit comes from David and a tradition of referring to objects with a person's name.
Vocabulary lists containing davit
A Night to Remember
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Novel Study: A Night to Remember, Chapter 6–Passenger List
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Secrets at Sea
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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.
La Rochelle jumped into a sixth-minute lead with a try by Davit Niniashvili.
From Barron's • Dec. 28, 2025
A day after UW defeated Cal in its Pac-12 opener to improve to 4-0, the Huskies received a verbal commitment from three-star offensive lineman Davit Boyajyan.
From Seattle Times • Sep. 24, 2023
The turning point came after nearly an hour when Georgia fullback Davit Niniashvili broke through but ignored three teammates on his inside and took the tackle.
From Washington Times • Sep. 9, 2023
Grayson: Georgia full-back Davit Niniashvili is a player who can score a try out of nothing.
From BBC • Sep. 8, 2023
She was gone, however, but only, as it were, to let a window open, from which came the cry, "Davit, have you seen my man?"
From Sentimental Tommy The Story of His Boyhood by Barrie, J. M. (James Matthew)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
