keel

¹

[keel]

noun

1. Nautical.,  a central fore-and-aft structural member in the bottom of a hull, extending from the stem to the sternpost and having the floors or frames attached to it, usually at right angles: sometimes projecting from the bottom of the hull to provide stability.

2. Literary.,  a ship or boat.

3. a part corresponding to a ship's keel in some other structure, as in a dirigible balloon.

4. Astronomy.,  Keel, the constellation Carina.

5. Botany, Zoology.,  a longitudinal ridge, as on a leaf or bone; a carina.

6. Also called brace molding. Architecture.,  a projecting molding the profile of which consists of two ogees symmetrically disposed about an arris or fillet.

verb (used with or without object)

1. to turn or upset so as to bring the wrong side or part uppermost.

verb phrase

1. keel over

   1. to capsize or overturn.

   2. to fall as in a faint.

      Several cadets keeled over from the heat during the parade.

keel

²

[keel]

noun

British Dialect.

1. keelboat.

2. the amount of coal carried by one keelboat.

3. a measure of coal equivalent to 21 long tons and 4 hundredweight (21.5 metric tons).

keel

³

[keel]

verb (used with object)

British Dialect.

1. to cool, especially by stirring.

keel

⁴

[keel]

noun

1. a red ocher stain used for marking sheep, lumber, etc.; ruddle.

keel

¹

/ kiːl /

noun

1. one of the main longitudinal structural members of a vessel to which the frames are fastened and that may extend into the water to provide lateral stability

2. well-balanced; steady

3. any structure corresponding to or resembling the keel of a ship, such as the central member along the bottom of an aircraft fuselage

4. biology a ridgelike part; carina

5. a poetic word for ship

verb

1. to capsize

keel

²

/ kiːl /

noun

1. a flat-bottomed vessel, esp one used for carrying coal

2. a measure of coal equal to about 21 tons

keel

³

/ kiːl /

noun

1. red ochre stain used for marking sheep, timber, etc

verb

1. to mark with this stain

keel

⁴

/ kiːl /

verb

1. an archaic word for cool

keel

⁵

/ kiːl /

noun

1. a fatal disease of young ducks, characterized by intestinal bleeding caused by Salmonella bacteria

Other Word Forms

• keeled adjective
• keel-less adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of keel¹

First recorded in 1325–75; 1895–1900 keel ¹ for def. 8; Middle English kele, from Old Norse kjǫlr; cognate with Old English cēol “keel, ship”; keel ²

Origin of keel²

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English kele, from Middle Dutch kiel “ship”; cognate with Old English cēol “ship,” German kiel “ship” (obsolete); keel ¹

Origin of keel³

First recorded before 900; Middle English kelen, Old English cēlan “to be cool”; akin to cool

Origin of keel⁴

First recorded in 1475–85; earlier keyle (north and Scots dialect); compare Scots Gaelic cìl (itself perhaps from English )

Word History and Origins

Origin of keel¹

C14: from Old Norse kjölr; related to Middle Dutch kiel, _keel ²

Origin of keel²

C14 kele, from Middle Dutch kiel; compare Old English cēol ship

Origin of keel³

Old English cēlan, from cōl _cool

Origin of keel⁴

C15: probably from Scottish Gaelic cīl

Origin of keel⁵

C19: from _keel ¹ ; see _{keel over}

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. on an even keel, in a state of balance; steady; steadily.

   The affairs of state are seldom on an even keel for long.

More idioms and phrases containing keel

• on an even keel

Example Sentences

She said there need to be "some real fundamental changes from within" but that "someone needs to steady the ship, someone needs to get it back on an even keel".

Read more on BBC

Among this evidence were the holes that had been built into the vessel’s keel, a typical feature of ships made in China’s Fujian province.

Read more on Literature

“It’s a false equivalency,” he said, “to say that we need to do everything on an even keel in California, but Texas” — which redrew its political map to boost Republicans — “can do whatever they want.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

His job now is to keep the team and drivers on an even keel, to try to brush off the pressure and focus on the job in hand.

Read more on BBC

The BlackFly takes off and lands on its curved keel, doesn’t have wheels and is surprisingly easy to operate.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal