mizzen

or miz·en

[ miz-uh n ]

/ ˈmɪz ən /

Nautical

noun

a fore-and-aft sail set on a mizzenmast.Compare crossjack, spanker(def 1a).

mizzenmast.

adjective

of or relating to a mizzenmast.

noting a sail, yard, boom, etc., or any rigging belonging to a mizzen lower mast or to some upper mast of a mizzenmast.

noting any stay running aft and upward to the head of a mizzen lower mast or some specified upper mast of a mizzenmast: mizzen topmast stay.

Nearby words

mizoram, mizrachi, mizrah, mizuma, mizuna, mizzen, mizzenmast, mizzle, mizzy maze, miño, miłosz

Origin of mizzen

1375–1425; late Middle English meson, mesan, probably < Italian mezzana

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for mizen

They were all three-masted schooners, the main and mizen masts set close together, and with very heavy, square hulls.
Northern Travel|Bayard Taylor
The mainsail and mizen are already close reefed, they are got ready for instant hoisting.
Storm Warriors|John Gilmore
This crash proved to be the fall of the mizen and top-gallant masts.
A Lady's Captivity among Chinese Pirates in the Chinese Seas|Fanny Loviot
I recollected the fire cask in the mizen chains, which we desired a man to push overboard.
Fifty-two Stories of the British Navy, from Damme to Trafalgar.|Alfred H. Miles

The ship's colours flew up to the fore, and the Union Jack to the mizen peak.
Hard Cash|Charles Reade

British Dictionary definitions for mizen

mizzen

mizen

nautical

noun

a sail set on a mizzenmast

short for mizzenmast

adjective

of or relating to any kind of gear used with a mizzenmasta mizzen staysail

Word Origin for mizzen

C15: from French misaine, from Italian mezzana, mezzano middle

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

Word Origin and History for mizen

mizzen

early 15c., from Middle French misaine "foresail, foremast," altered (by influence of Italian mezzana "mizzen") from Old French migenne, from Catalan mitjana, from Latin medianus "of the middle" (see median). Klein suggests the French word is from Arabic, via Italian.