pelorus
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of pelorus
1850–55; perhaps < Latin Pelōrus, now Faro in Sicily, a cape which requires skill in navigation
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.
Steady the ship on this heading until the shadow from the pelorus vane at the proper L.A.T. cuts the circumference of the pelorus dial at the proper magnetic bearing.
From Lectures in Navigation by Draper, Ernest Gallaudet
First, that when the bearing is taken, the exact heading, as shown by the ship's compass, is the heading shown by the pelorus.
From Lectures in Navigation by Draper, Ernest Gallaudet
Zircon took sightings with the pelorus, then calculated his readings.
From The Pirates of Shan by Goodwin, Harold L. (Harold Leland)
In other words, if the ship is heading NW, the pelorus must be set with the NW point on the lubber line when the bearing is taken of any object.
From Lectures in Navigation by Draper, Ernest Gallaudet
In taking a bearing by pelorus, two facts must be kept in mind.
From Lectures in Navigation by Draper, Ernest Gallaudet
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
