lugsail

[ luhg-seyl; Nautical luhg-suhl ]

/ ˈlʌgˌseɪl; Nautical ˈlʌg səl /

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noun Nautical.

a quadrilateral sail bent upon a yard that crosses the mast obliquely.

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Also called lug.

Origin of lugsail

1670–80; Middle English lugge pole (now dial.; cf. log¹) + sail

Words nearby lugsail

lug nut, Lugo, Lugones, Lugosi, lug-rigged, lugsail, lug screw, lug-soled, lugubrious, lugworm, lug wrench

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use lugsail in a sentence

She began to hoist her lugsail in a dazed, shiftless fashion, while our two boats drifted slowly to leeward.
The Riddle of the Sands|Erskine Childers
The light was growing each moment, the breeze dying fast, and presently the damp lugsail slatted against the mast.
The League of the Leopard|Harold Bindloss
There's a nice southwester blowing now, and under the big lugsail we ought to overhaul the canoe before he does so.
The League of the Leopard|Harold Bindloss
With the wind astern, your head of hair will be as good as a lugsail; and with the wind ahead, we can reef it hard.
The Remarkable History of Sir Thomas Upmore, bart., M.P., formerly known as "Tommy Upmore"|R. D. Blackmore

We then discovered a lugsail, which had belonged to one of the ships' boats; this we hoisted; and our craft was ready to sail.
The Swiss Family Robinson|Johann David Wyss

British Dictionary definitions for lugsail

lugsail

lug (lʌɡ)

/ (ˈlʌɡsəl) /

noun

nautical a four-sided sail bent and hoisted on a yard

Word Origin for lugsail

C17: perhaps from Middle English (now dialect) lugge pole, or from lugge ear

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