main-topmast

American

[mayn-top-mast, -mahst, mayn-top-muhst] / ˌmeɪnˈtɒpˌmæst, -ˌmɑst, ˌmeɪnˈtɒp məst /

noun

Nautical.

the mast next above the main lower mast.

main-topmast British

noun

nautical the mast immediately above the mainmast

"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

Etymology

Origin of main-topmast

First recorded in 1485–95

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.

See Examples For:

main-topmast

A well aimed shot brought down the pirate's fore topsail-yard, which hung in the slings, and succeeding shots did much injury to her masts and rigging, and at length the main-topmast fell over the side.

From Graham's Magazine Vol XXXIII No. 4 October 1848 by Various

The main-topmast, since it supported the wireless aerials, had perforce to remain.

From The Fight for Constantinople A Story of the Gallipoli Peninsula by Percy F. (Percy Francis) Westerman

One end of a heavy cable was fastened to the main-topmast and the other was secured to the top of the cliff.

From Woven with the Ship A Novel of 1865 by Cyrus Townsend Brady

The main-topmast had gone close to the cap.

From The Heir of Kilfinnan A Tale of the Shore and Ocean by W. Herbert Holloway

Away to leeward we discovered the Canada, with her main-topmast and mizzenmast gone.

From Paddy Finn by Archibald Webb

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023