dumpy level

American  

noun

Surveying.

1. an instrument consisting of a spirit level mounted under and parallel to a telescope, the latter being rigidly attached to its supports.

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dumpy level British  

noun

1. surveying a levelling instrument consisting of a horizontal telescope with various rotational arrangements and a spirit level

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Etymology

Origin of dumpy level

First recorded in 1830–40

Example Sentences

Water from its dumpy level Shall elevate each thirsty soul: And if dull care approach our revel, We'll drown it in the sugar bowl.

From Project Gutenberg

He knew every subtle incline of the seven or eight miles of ground between Hintock and Sherton Abbas—the market-town to which he journeyed—as accurately as any surveyor could have learned it by a Dumpy level.

From Project Gutenberg